The Warmth of Winter
by RareNyte
Summary: Following a fateful encounter with a certain Ice Queen that left him with the unique ability to manipulate snow and ice to his will, Jaune begins his journey at Beacon, not knowing that the heiress herself had also decided to attend. Thus begins their adventure of hardship, horrible ice puns and maybe even a chance of romance. AU
1. Ice Breaker

The girl focused on her breathing as she tried to recall what information she currently possessed.

1- She was alive

2- She was alone

3- She... was scared

Weiss shook her head as she tried to rid herself of her fear, there was no sense in dilly dallying, she had to do something, though that was easier said than done in her situation.

She looked around the cracks in the downed airship and could see that she had crash landed in the middle of a snowstorm,it had fallen into a clearing surrounded by thick woods on every side.

_Just perfect... _she told herself as along with the deathtrap surrounding her, the severe cold and creatures of Grimm were now added to the list of possible causes of imminent death.

First things first, she had to get herself out of the wreckage, she attempted to pick herself up but was stopped in her tracks, causing her to and wince in pain.

She looked down at her waist to realize the was trapped by her seats armrests that had become mangled during the crash. She thanked her stars for her aura, after all, in situations such as this you had to count your blessings.

She struggled simultaneously to retain her consciousness and wrench herself free, but after numerous attempts, she conceded that the the metal bars were not going to budge any time soon, leaving only one thing to do.

She looked around the compartment, searching for her trusty weapon in order to slice her way out.  
>She managed to just about make out the silver hilt buried beneath scraps of metal and reached out to retrieve it.<p>

The heiress stretched with all her might, trying and failing to ignore the growing pain in her abdomen as she reached for possibly her only survival option.

It was no use, it was just too far! With a grunt she relented and tried to think about her next move.  
>In all honesty, it seemed like a no win situation, she knew she shouldn't just give up... but what left was there to do?<p>

A sudden call from her father telling her to come back from her training prematurely was what got her into the unmanned airship. Pre-programmed with a flight path, one that had obviously been intercepted.

She had heard large explosions battering the outside of the metal craft, then she heard the rapid beeping and sirens before the ship began to spiral into a free-fall.

Now she was stuck, with seemingly no way out, closing her eyes shut, she allowed herself to do something she hadn't for a very long time. Several tears started cascading down her pale cheeks before she started quietly sobbing to herself.

This was it, this was the end for her, she knew it. She clasped her head in her hands as she thought about her life.

There was so much she hadn't done! She had spent her entire life up until now, at the age of 15, cooped up in her home, never allowed to go out on her own accord, only being able to leave for school purposes.

Thus, she was never able to make any kind of relationship with anyone her age, why couldn't she have made at least one friend? At least one! One would be fine, one that she could laugh with in the good times and rely on in the bad, didn't she deserve the same as any other girl her age?

She let out a yelp as a fire suddenly erupted from the remains of the cockpit, slowly starting to spread to the other parts of the craft.

She shut her eyes tight, she would never be able to make a friend, she would never be a huntress, she would never find anyone to confide in, to trust, to _love._

Weiss was temporarily surprised by her own thoughts, since when was she interested in that kind of thing? She decided that since it was likely her last moments she probably wasn't thinking straight.

Although... maybe... it would have been nice, at least once... to have someone like that... but it was pointless now.  
>She sighed once more before leaning back and accepting the inevitable.<p>

"Uh.. miss?"  
>"Quiet! Can't you see I'm trying to find peace?" She scolded reflexively before the gears in her head began to turn as she sat up immediately to see the origin on the voice.<p>

There, looking at her with a nervous grin, was a boy around her age, he was skinny teen with an odd shade of yellow colored hair, clad in a black and orange hoodie, though the feature she focused on most were his eyes... they were blue like hers except they were a deep blue, full of warmth and innocence. For some reason, she couldn't help but let her eyes linger on them.

"Uh, miss?" he repeated, startling the heiress that didn't realize that she was being drawn in.  
>"I was wandering outside my village when I saw the crash, are you okay?"<p>

As she focused on the rest of the boy, she realized that there on his hip was a white and golden sheathe.

"That! Is that a sword?" She asked pointing at it as the boy nodded before pulling it out.  
>"Quick, cut me out of here!" She ordered, becoming increasingly aware of the fires spreading towards her.<br>The boy watched her as she showed him the metal bars that kept her fixed in place.

He raised his sword to strike before stopping and looking unsure. Weiss was getting impatient.  
>"What are you waiting for?" The boy lowered his sword, looking ashamed.<br>"I'm not sure I can do it without cutting you" He admitted.  
>"What?! You know how to use that thing don't you?" she pointed at the sword.<p>

He shook his head "A little, but if I mess up..." Weiss looked at him in annoyance.

"With that attitude, you'll never get anything right! Don't run away just because it scares you! You have to overcome this, you can do it, I know it, you just have to believe in yourself a little!" she didn't really know what she was saying or if she meant it, but it seemed to have the desired effect as something seemed to spark inside of him as he raised his sword yet again with a look of bravery in his eyes.

He aimed carefully as Weiss leaned back as far as she could just in case. He took a breath before swing the sword down to meet the bars.

_'**ca-dunk'**_

Weiss opened her eyes as the bars that confined her now lay broken at her feet, she was free!

"Not bad" she commented passively, hiding her glee.

The boy smiled proudly before holding out a hand. "Hey, I'm Jaune"  
>The heiress coughed, remembering her position and politely took his hand before standing and brushing herself off.<p>

"Weiss Schnee, pleasure" She spoke elegantly as she stepped outside of the wreckage and breathed in the cold air, it felt so refreshing!

"So, why were you in there in the first place?" The boy asked curiously, Weiss's eyes widened as she had forgotten that crucial detail.

_"IT LANDED IN THE CLEARING! HURRY" _the yell came from the thick woods, it was close. She quickly turned to the blond

"Quick, we have to get out of here!" She yelled in panic as he nodded, sheathing his sword and coming towards her.  
>It was then that she noticed a small metal briefcase laying just outside the craft, undamaged.<p>

"Wait, grab that first!" He turned towards it and attempted to lift it, managing to get it a few feet off the ground before his untrained muscles failed him as he was forced to drop it. Just what the hell was in it?

Jaune rubbed his now aching arms and looked back in desperation.

"Is it really that important?" he seemed eager to get out of there, but Weiss knew she couldn't leave without it, the products inside were entrusted to her by her father before she left for training.

Weiss knew, plane crash or not, without that briefcase, her father would be fuming, and that never lead to anything good.  
>"It's.. important to me" Jaune didn't seem satisfied with the vague answer but had no time to respond.<p>

The sudden sound of footsteps spurred the boy into action as he held his breath before begrudgingly picked up the heavy case, pulling the handle up to his shoulders before joining the heiress as they ran into the dark woods.

* * *

><p>They ran through the thick snow, neither knowing how long for, with the snow hindering their vision, they stumbled and staggered through the endless forest, having to constantly call out to each other, neither being able to see the other.<p>

"Ah!" Weiss exclaimed as she was tripped and fell to the snow covered ground, she was struggling to pick herself up again. Like it or not, she had to swallow her pride once more and rely on others.

"Jaune!" She called, her only response being the whistling of the freezing winds as the blond was nowhere to be seen.  
>"Jaune!" She repeated, no response.<p>

She gasped as she came to the obvious conclusion, he had left her.

She should have known, no one would willingly help her for no reason, he had probably just seen her and thought about the possible reward money for finding her.  
>It was fine, she didn't need him anyway, at least that's what she told herself. Ignoring the cold tears that began to reappear as she whimpered in distress.<p>

_"Jau-"_

"WEISS!" Her eyes shot open as she heard the familiar voice, she initially dismissed it as a figment of her imagination to taunt her in her last moments.  
>It was only when she felt herself being picked up bridal style and once again rushing through the dark, snowy woods that she began to consider the possibility.<p>

He had come back for her...

* * *

><p>After minutes of panting, shambling through the blackness, a light appeared in front of them. It looked like the entrance to another clearing, Jaune quickly rushed towards it, anything would be preferable to spending another minute in the darkness of the forest.<p>

As he entered the clearing, he covered his eyes as they adjusted to the light before re opening them and dropping his jaw in awe at the sight.

The girl in his arms groggily flickered her eyes opened as she too took in the beauty before them.

They had come across a small cliff edge that allowed you to see over the entire forest and the icy glaciers beyond. And just below the cliff side was a beautiful frozen lake that seemed to sparkle as the snow fell upon it.

The pair temporarily allowed themselves to take it in as Jaune set the heiress down, making sure she could stand before letting her go.

With a groan he set down the heavy briefcase the metal briefcase he was forced to carry over his shoulder, not that he would risk complaining to Weiss, who for the first time since they met, was smiling, obviously taken in by the view. It was a much better look for her.

"It's beautiful, don't you think?" she felt a soothing sense of calmness as she addressed the boy behind her.

"Yeah, it really is" he replied, focusing on something entirely different.

"Is that your village?" Weiss asked, spotting a collection of buildings and houses to the west of the forest.

Jaune smiled at that "Yup, home sweet home, I live there with my parents and sisters"

"It looks... welcoming" She couldn't think of much else to say, the village looked rustic, yet charmingly so, but she was used to bigger cities.

"I'll show you around, then, I know the _best _comic book stand!" She rolled her eyes at the blond's attempt to impress her before turning away.

Weiss looked thoughtful before speaking once more without turning back towards the boy.

"Listen, if you weren't there today... I don't think I would have made it out of there in time, you saved my life" she chuckled fondly, a first for her.  
>"more than once actually... I suppose what I'm really trying to say is... thank you" she whispered the last part.<p>

She got no reply, she thought it was uncommon for anyone to be speechless at such a simple thank you, then she heard the thud as his body hit the floor.

She turned around instantly and looked on in horror as the blond's body collapsed against the snow as a man in a white and black uniform stepped over him, grabbing the briefcase and turning towards the heiress, the uniform had a red wolf with three claw marks against it.

_'The White Fang!" _she thought with anger as he took another step towards her.

"Did you really think we couldn't follow your tracks? Ever heard of snowprints, princess?" Weiss cursed beneath her breath as he moved to close their distance.

She reached to her side only to realize she had forgotten Myrtenaster back at the crash site.

"You should have just died in the crash, now we get to take you alive" he smirked, grabbing the heiress by the throat and lifting her off the ground.  
>Weiss couldn't fight back, the crash and the forest run had left her exhausted, unable to even activate her semblance.<br>The man's smile grew rider as he began to laugh as Weiss started to lose consciousness.

"Put... her...down" Weiss turned to her side in surprise as she saw the blond attempted to pick himself up, only managing to get onto one knee.  
>"Oh yeah? And why should I do-"<p>

"And the case" Jaune spat, the man grumbled, annoyed at the interruption.

Jaune lifted himself slightly into a position that seemed to resemble... no, he couldn't be thinking, Weiss looked on in concern.

"That case..." He lifted his finger to point at it, then to Weiss.

"...is important to her..." The man attempted to retort but was silenced as the boy looked up with piercing eyes, the eyes Weiss had been drawn in by before, this time filled with valor and passion, they really were his best features.

"And that girl..." He slowly turned his finger towards himself.

"Is important... to ME!" with that he rushed forward to charge the man as he dropped the girl in order to defend himself.

But Jaune didn't stop.

Without any hesitation, he charged into the man, sending them both flying off the cliff edge as Weiss looked on in shock.

One second they were there, the next they vanished from view.

There was a resounding crack then a splash as Weiss looked over the cliff to see the water ripple as two shapes fell below the surface, into the murky waters.

_"JAUNE!"_

* * *

><p>Jaune took a moment to consider his actions over the last 5 seconds, he tackled an assassin... off a cliff... into a frozen lake..., not his brightest idea.<p>

His thoughts were interrupted as they plunged into the black abyss of freezing water that instantly set his brain into overdrive as he realized the danger he was in, he looked around him and barely managed to make out the silver shining briefcase, then to his left he saw a dark object approaching him rapidly.

It took him a second to dodge the fist as he saw the body it connected to, the assassin wasn't finished quite yet. Jaune attempted to go for his sword but couldn't get it out fast enough before receiving a blow to the stomach, forcing all the air out of his lungs.

He let out a drowned yell as the assassin smirked as he revealed his shark like teeth, being a faunus really came with its perks.

Jaune felt his consciousness slipping as the cold prevented him from moving any more as he closed his eyes in defeat.

At least he had died saving someone else, right? That's probably a good way to go.. well it's the best he would get.

That's when he heard it, a voice, calling out his name, he squinted his eyes and looked through the assassin shaped break in the ice as he saw a person calling down for him, it was a beautiful girl, with white hair styled into an immaculate ponytail with pearly white skin and icy blue eyes that he found so alluring.

'_Weiss...' _he thought, suddenly regaining his senses as he saw now a reason to stay, he had someone he wanted to stand beside, someone he wanted to protect.

With a new sense of determination, he re-checked his options. Weapons are useless, he had no hand to hand skills and he hadn't even unlocked his aura yet.

Realizing his job wasn't done yet, the assassin swam back to the drowning blond.

With little else he could do, he held up his arms to block the oncoming punch that propelled him backwards through the water.

_"**Thud**__" _he winced as he had hit his head on something hard, turning around, he saw that it was the silver briefcase, he prayed it contained something useful.

He attempted to force it open, to no avail, he turned it over and looked closer, it needed a combination!

Sensing something coming towards him, Jaune did the first thing that came to mind and blocked the blow with the case.

The assassin let out a silent shout as he clutched his hand. The blond was distracted by something shiny that floated in front of him, it was the case combination lock. Then that would mean...

He took another look at the case and sure enough, he was able to open it.

He was temporarily stunned as a radiant powder blue light shone from the case, illuminating the dark surrounding the two.

Something about the glowing light captivate him, it gave him a sense of wonder he had never felt before.

He was broken from his stupor as he saw the assassin preparing for another strike.

Dust, what could Jaune do with Dust? He had no weapons, he had no way to ignite it, he didn't have any spare cloth to make a cape, though that wouldn't really help in the situation at hand.

Then, it became clear to him, he remembered the other way to use Dust, it came with heavy risks and was considered crazy but he was out of options, he had to do something!

With one glance upwards towards the heiress above the surface. He narrowed his eyes with determination.

There was no turning back after this...

_'Here goes nothing...'_

* * *

><p>"Jaune! Jaune can you hear me?!" she yelled down the crack in the ice, having lost sight of her savior, he probably wouldn't be able to hear her anyway.<br>She couldn't sit still, constantly pacing, thinking about what she could do.

Getting Myternaster was out of the question, navigating those woods was near impossible, she couldn't call for help, no reception.

The heiress took a glance town into the freezing waters.

Could she jump in after him? A part of her told her it was ridiculous, that she would only be getting herself killed by doing so, but what else was there?! She had to help him, after all the times he saved her, she couldn't let him die for her too!

He was her first... friend. It felt odd for her to use that word but she was sure that's what he was, they had met just hours before and yet there was no doubt in her mind.

With that new-found revelation, she removed her light blue jacket, ignoring the cold as she removed her shoes and took he position over the crack.  
>Steeling her resolve, she prepared herself to dive and started counting.<p>

_3..._

_He better not have drowned already..._

_2.._

_He is SO going to pay for a new dress when this is over..._

_1.._

**_"CRACK"_**

Weiss' counting was interrupted as she saw the crack slowly beginning to expand, causing the rest of the frozen lake to break, including where she was standing. However she was distracted by something else entirely.

Two shadowy shapes were making their way towards the surface, and they were coming _very _quickly.

Before she could get off of the frozen lake, there was a rumbling as the shape came closer to the surface. The heiress took a knee as the tremors increased.

Then without warning, the ice in front of her suddenly shattered as a colossal pillar of snow and ice shot out from the water, bringing along with it the White Fang Assassin and a boy in a black hoodie before it stopped growing 20 ft above her, she could just make out the conversation between the two.

"Your friends, get them and get out of here, and know that if you ever go after _my_ friends again, I will _not_ be so forgiving, got it?" The assassin nodded in fright of the teen in front of him.

Weiss recognized the voice, but it sounded... colder than before, there was a certain icy tone to his voice when he was threatening the White Fang member.

The assassin jumped down from the icy structure and as soon as he was out of sight, the ice pillar began to shrink in size until it was low enough so that Weiss could see the teen on top.

It was a boy around her age, he was a skinny teen with snow white skin and similarly colored hair that was styled like Jaune's but with rougher edges and spikes in several places, clad in a black hoodie, just like his.

"Who are you and where is Jaune?" Weiss stared the newcomer down, she had noticed that the boy looked remarkably like him, but it couldn't be.  
>"Weiss..." he faced her and smiled, opening his eyes to reveal deep blue eyes, full of warmth and innocence.<p>

It was him, his other features may have changed slightly but his eyes remained the same. She would remember those eyes anywhere.

She didn't notice tears starting to well up before she ran to him and embraced the teen, relieved that he was safe.

"Jaune..."

"Let's get out of here, Snow Angel"


	2. Snowed In

**Hi, RareNyte here, I just want to thank you for the amount of feedback I received from the first chapter, apparently you guys want more of this and I am happy to supply!**

**We aren't to Beacon quite yet because I felt I wanted to lay the foundations for a bit before that, but it will come.**

**For now, please enjoy this chapter and leave a review if you'd like!**

* * *

><p>The girl waited patiently at the door, listening for signs to tell if the boy resting inside was asleep, not wanting to disturb him otherwise.<p>

After a few seconds, she heard blankets being removed then a long yawn like a child after a nap, causing Weiss to chuckle quietly before reaching up to the door.

**_'Knock Knock'_**

"Jaune? May I come in?" she called from behind the door. It was silent for a few seconds and Weiss began to wonder if he had heard her and reached to knock again when the door swung open, revealing the boy with a sleepy smile.

"Morning, Weiss" he greeted cheerfully before opening the door all the way and allowing her in.  
>"I brought you some cocoa from downstairs" She carefully placed the tray on his bedside table before inspecting the room.<p>

He had kept it surprisingly clean, though she supposed that was natural since he wasn't up and about often.  
>Satisfied, she turned to the boy himself, he was sitting on the bed happily sipping his cocoa.<p>

He was dressed in the same jeans he had worn on the day but had hung up his hoodie, sleeping in a plain white undershirt.

She took a step closer toward him before leaning toward him, her eyes giving him a thorough check up.  
>It was hard to say if his color was healthy, seeing as it had been completely bleached white.<p>

"Lift up your shirt" she ordered, Jaune looked up to protest but saw the serious expression on Weiss's face and gulped before pulling the fabric up and allowing her to look.

He still had bruises from the fight with the assassin, but they were already fading. Apart from the fatigue, he didn't seem to have anything else wrong with him. Happy with her findings, Weiss stepped back and her scrutinizing stare was replaced with a satisfied smile, much to Jaune's relief.

"Good. You're getting better" Jaune cracked a wide grin at that.

"Finally, we can leave now right?" before she could even reply, Jaune was up, grabbing his things from around the room and began to shove them into his rucksack.

"Woah, woah, woah, wait a minute" Weiss took hold of his arm, "We are only leaving here when you are physically fit and able" she insisted.

"Hey, I'm fine see? Trust me" Jaune held out his arms, presenting himself with a cheesy grin. Weiss had to admit, the boy was by all appearances just fine.

With a sigh, she conceded defeat "Fine, we'll leave today, get your stuff ready". The pale boy thanked her enthusiastically before continuing to gather his belongings.

"You've been holed up in here for a few days now, we should probably let some air in" she went to open the window, not noticing the sudden look on horror that appeared on Jaune's face.

"W-wait!" With a whistle, a cold wind entered the room, Weiss breathed it in, quite enjoying the air of the village, not that she would admit it, she had no intention of becoming a country bumpkin.

"That's better, now Jaune... Jaune?" she turned only to find that the boy was no longer scattering around the room.

In fact, the only audible sound was the quiet sharp breaths of a shape buried beneath the blankets on the bed.

"...It's still happening isn't it?" the rapid chattering of his teeth were answer enough, she sighed, annoyed at the teen's secrecy. "Don't put on a tough guy act, I know you're freezing" she sat on the bed and began to stroke some of his uncovered snow white hair.

She held a lock of it between her fingers and looked closely, it clearly wasn't dyed, there were no signs of any blonde roots, it was as if his genes were altered entirely.

These were the after effects of the Dust fusion that took place in the depths of that frozen lake.  
>He only started showing signs of it after they had successfully navigated through the forest, either that or he just couldn't keep up the facade any longer.<p>

He was constantly cold, she would have expected no less from a fusion with that kind of Dust, the snowy climate of the area wasn't exactly helping either...

They had to find someplace warm but he had insisted they rent a room at a small bed and breakfast rather than his home, probably not wanting them to see the alterations to his appearance.

A violent shudder from the boy sent a pang of guilt to the heiress' heart, she knew that it was because of her that he was like that, well her and the boy's frankly reckless behavior.

She rubbed his shoulders though the blanket, trying to comfort him.  
>Weiss couldn't believe that he had attempted to leave that morning, she tried not to imagine what would have happened when he made it out into the streets.<p>

It was obvious that Jaune wanted to get out of there, it was obvious he didn't like playing patient and probably thought he was a burden to her. Weiss would not be having any of that nonsense! Dim as he may be, he was her first friend and she would not give up on him so easily.

"Jaune, you need to rest" she whispered matter-of-factly and shushed a murmur of protest from the shaking lump beneath the blanket.

"You are chilled to the bone you dunce! Acting like you're fine when you're not isn't impressive, you know, it's simply juvenile" she stated, not earning a response from the bedridden boy but she knew he was listening.

Giving his hair one last tousle, she lifted herself off the bed and decided to give him some time to himself.  
>She gave him one last look of concern as she stood in the doorway,<br>silently regretting ordering him to bring the briefcase from the plane crash on that fateful day.

"Drink your cocoa, I'll be back"

* * *

><p>Setting down the cup on the table, Jaune made a mental note to thank Weiss later for the hot beverage, his hands had stopped shaking and his breathing had returned to normal, he still wasn't warm by any definition but now it was at least bearable.<p>

He hoped the effects wouldn't last too long, Weiss had a life to go back to and he didn't want to force her into playing doctor day after day.

It wasn't like he didn't enjoy her company, not by a long shot, but he didn't want to be a hindrance to her.

Jaune sighed as he stared up at the ceiling, thinking over the events of the last few days, he brightened up slightly when he remembered the conversation about his change.

* * *

><p><em>Weiss and the blond- <strong>ex <strong>blond both smiled as their eyes adjusted to the sight, relieved that they managed found themselves in the same clearing they had met, their footprints had a silver lining apparently as they managed to easily follow it back the way they came._

_Hopefully, the girl's rapier hadn't been damaged in the wreckage._  
><em>Fearing the worst, they approached the downed aircraft and peered inside<em>

_Luckily for the pair, the fires inside had been extinguished by the White Fang group that had searched it for their target._

_They had also seemingly been too occupied with their pursuit to notice the end of the silver rapier sticking out from a small pile of metal scraps._

_Weiss let out a sigh of relief, while the briefcase was lost, at least she still had Myternaster._  
><em>Speaking of the briefcase... she reattached her rapier to her hip before turning towards her friend. Finally wishing to question just what happened beneath the frozen lake.<em>

_"So... what happened to you? I mean, your hair and skin... and that ice pillar"_

_He scratched his head, wondering the same "I'm not too sure myself, I wasn't really thinking straight at the time, but it probably has something with that briefcase of Dust I ate. Sorry about that by the way, I know you said it was important to you..."_

_Her expression turned to one of extreme shock as she processed what he had just said  
>"You did WHAT?!" she exclaimed in horror<em>  
><em>"Sorry! I was kinda out of options, you know, drowning and all. There was a guy with shark teeth after me, what's a guy to do?"<em>

_She shook her head vigorously "Not that, you ATE the Dust?!" prompting a timid nod from the teen._  
><em>"What could POSSIBLY spur you to do something like that?"<em>

_"Well, it was the only thing I could think of at the time, I remembered some TV show about the uses of Dust and how you could gain power by fusing them with your body" he tried to explain, but even to him, it sounded like a crazy move._

_"That was dangerous, that Dust could have just as easily been toxic! You could have died" Weiss berated him, waving her finger at him much like a mother would._  
><em>The boy looked down at his feet bashfully "sorry..." he spoke softly.<em>

_Weiss sighed before raising her arm to lift his chin up to look her in the eyes._

_"Just make sure that next time, you find out what it is before you stuff your face with it?"_  
><em>A small smile appeared on Jaune's face as he gazed back into her icy blue irises.<em>  
><em>"I promise"<br>_

* * *

><p>Jaune smiled fondly at the memories, he wanted to spend some more time with Weiss before her inevitable departure but he couldn't do anything in his current state.<p>

He looked over at the closed window with a thoughtful expression before something occurred to mind.

Well, if Weiss wouldn't let him go out until he was better, than he'd just have to accelerate the process himself!  
>With a fresh sense of determination, Jaune forced himself out from under the covers and started walking over to the door, grabbing his newly dyed hoodie on the way.<p>

Having pulled it over him, he took a moment to prepare himself before heading downstairs and opening the front door to the B & B, facing the cold air once more.

* * *

><p>"Enjoy your purchases!" Weiss gave a polite nod to the vendor before picking up her bags and exiting the shop into the street. Looking around, she noticed that this part of the village was fairly deserted, the only place people seemed to congregate being the town square.<p>

It was not a bustling place like Vale and there were not many other customers walking around, though it came as a breath of fresh air to the heiress, happy not to be caught up in the crowds.

She looked own into her bag to make sure she had everything she wanted, inside were two fresh sets of clothes, toiletries, a portable heater and some nightwear.

Since it was likely Jaune would take a bit more time to recover, she decided to buy him something other than his raggedy trousers and shirt to wear.

Just as she was about to head back to the bed and breakfast, she caught sight of a more regal looking outlet identified by a white and silver sign reading 'Garnets and Garments', she remembered hearing that name.

It sold clothing infused with dust for several different purposes, it was apparently a very expensive shop, leaving Weiss confused as to why one was located here.

On her approach, she was immediately drawn to a certain item in the window, it was a set of two purple finger-less gloves, matching the color of Jaune's hoodie sleeves. Next to the pair was a small sign  
><em><br>'Practical Gloves fit for a hunter, infused with rare dust crystals, keeping you insulated even in the coldest of weather!'_

Without a second thought, Weiss entered the outlet and walked right up to the front desk.  
>"Hello, what can I do for you?" the vendor asked with a business like smile, Weiss lifted her arm, pointing to the items in the window.<p>

"A set of those gloves, please" the vendor nodded before reaching down under the desk and bringing out another pair, gently placing them on the counter.

"A very good choice, young lady. Though it's quite pricey, are you sure you have enough?" Weiss smirked before pulling out her Schnee Dust Company credit card.  
>"I'm fairly confident"<p>

Satisfied, the vendor swiped her card and handed the heiress an expensive looking bag with a smile  
>"Thank you, hope you come-" the vendor was abruptly cut off as two men in suits opened the shop door, entering without a word. One standing tall and slim, the other slumped over and stocky.<p>

_"Not these two again" _the vendor muttered beneath his breath his official smile replaced by a scowl. Weiss looked at the two men in confusion, their outfits seemed... familiar. They seemed to give off a predatory aura as they approached the man behind the counter, Weiss instinctively took a few steps back

"Look I already told you, I haven't seen anyone like that-" he began before being roughly interrupted as the first man grabbed him by the collar, not breaking eye contact.

"We know she's in the village, and that she wouldn't ever buy from the commoners, this is the only place she'd be!" Weiss's eyes widened, they couldn't possibly be talking about...

Her fears increased as the second man turned in her direction, eyeing her up and down with suspicion.  
>"Hey, what was her description again?" The man addressed his partner, who looked over his shoulder in annoyance.<br>"I told you already, white hair, blue eyes, remember?"

"...Possibly wearing a light blue dress?"  
>"What are you- oh... hello there" the first man greeted, dropping the shopkeeper and putting on an innocent grin.<br>"Miss Schnee, I presume?" She remained silent for a few seconds, looking quickly between the two men before clearing her throat to respond.

"Yes, did Father send you?" Weiss asked innocently, already knowing the answer  
>"Yes, he has been very worried about you and we were asked to find and escort you back home safely" he finished with the smile that still hadn't become any more convincing.<p>

"Looks like he was worried for nothing, already back to shopping, I see?" the second man stated, pointing at the bags in the heiress' hands.  
>"Ah yes!" She lied with an embarrassed expression, there was no way she could tell them about the sickly ice caster in her care.<br>"It comforts me, I suppose!"

The men looked skeptical before shrugging it off, girls would be girls, they supposed.  
>"Now, if you'll excuse me" Weiss gave a respectful nod before attempting to leave the outlet as quickly as possible.<br>"Hey, little lady" the first man lent against the door, blocking her exit path. "Didn't you hear me? I said we were ordered to get you home"

Weiss cursed inwardly, this wasn't going to be easy. Not inclined to abandon her first friend in his time of need.  
>"Does it have to be right now?" she asked hopefully, the guard chuckled, still keeping up the friendly routine as if she hadn't just witnessed him shaking down an innocent vendor.<br>"Afraid so, daddy wants you back as soon as possible, okay?"

Weiss kept smiling as she tried to edge past the looming figure  
>"Well, if you give me just a few hours, I assure you I'll be-" she was jerked back as the man forcefully took hold of her wrist.<p>

"Now would be preferable, Miss Schnee" he spoke coldly, his smile faltering as he tightened his grip on her wrist.  
>"Let go of me! I have do something first!" she squirmed, only serving to anger the man as he took hold of her other wrist, pinning her against the door frame.<p>

"Listen, little girl, you are going to be obedient for daddy, aren't you? Now shut up and come with-"  
>Any words he had planned to say were lost as Weiss' knee found itself firmly planted into his crotch as he let out a high pitch squeal before collapsing to he ground.<p>

Seeing her chance, the heiress sped out of the outlet, desperate to escape the pair and return to Jaune.

"Hey man, you okay?!" the second man cringed at his partner reeling in pain on the floor.  
>"Don't just stand there, GET HER!" he barked as the second man nodded before heading out after the heiress.<p>

"Freaking brat..." the first man cursed, caressing his damaged goods with tears brimming in his eyes.

* * *

><p>Bad idea, it was definitely a bad idea, they didn't seem to uncommon for the boy lately as Jaune shivered once more, attempting to bear the icy temperature of the outside.<p>

As passionate as he was before, it was for naught against the blistering cold that now felt like it was slowly freezing him to death where he stood.

He had his hood pulled over his head, hiding his hair and eyes from view as he stumbled through the marketplace, earning more than a few odd looks from other customers.

He paid them no mind as his mind was focused on pressing on through the streets, trying to fight off the sudden drowsiness that came upon him.

As much as he would have liked to turn back, he couldn't just give up now he'd gotten this far, it was all or nothing.  
>Though as he started to forget where he was walking despite having grown up there, he felt fate was leaning towards the latter.<p>

A sudden commotion alerted him as he squinted ahead, managing to make out a light blue blur running through a nearby street as a larger black one followed in pursuit.

For some reason, the boy felt compelled to check it out as he slowly but surely made his way over to the scene.  
>He didn't noticed the other man running in the same direction before he was roughly shoved out of the way by a man in a black suit that ran in the same direction, although the way he ran was a bit off, keeping his legs separated and swearing beneath his breath.<p>

"Rotten bastards..." the boy turned to see a very angry looking vendor standing in the doorway scowling after the black blur.

"Ex-excuse me" Jaune stuttered, his speech impeded by the severe chill he was feeling.  
>"Did you see what happened here?"<br>"Those black tied bastards came back again looking for the same girl, didn't look too friendly, the girl managed to run off after hitting one of em where it hurts most. Hmph, serves him right" he responded gruffly.

Fearing the worst, Jaune spoke up "...w-what did the men want?"  
>the vendor shrugged casually "Sounded like they were just taking the girl home, but they seemed pretty shady to me"<br>Jaune's eyes widened, temporarily forgetting the cold as he looked the vendor straight in the eyes.

"Did they happen to run in that direction?" He pointed to where he had seen the rushing blurs as the vendor nodded.  
>"Yeah, the bumbling idiot first then the other after he got up from bawling like a baby, you shoulda seen him, he was-" he turned to see that the space the boy had occupied was now empty.<p>

* * *

><p>Weiss panted as she hurtled down another alleyway, trying desperately to escape the thunderous footsteps that followed her relentlessly. She knew she couldn't engage them in combat, they were hired by her own father, after all.<br>That didn't mean she couldn't run away though, she could always just say she was startled and thought they were trying to abduct her, which was partly true.

Taking a right down a narrow passage, she ended up navigating her way to the the town square which was considerably more populated than the other areas.

Slowing to a quick walk, she integrated into one of the small crowds and attempted to blend in, which was considerably difficult for a girl wearing a a combat skirt and a silver tiara in her hair.

She stole a glance behind her as she witnessed the two men in black standing upon a small podium, searching through the small crowds. Weiss quickly turned away and picked up the pace, heading in the direction of the Bed and Breakfast.

She had almost made her way out of the square when she heard a small girl gasp as the heiress walked by.  
>"Mommy! It's a princess!" She exclaimed excitedly as most of the eyes in the square turned to the uncommon sight,<br>including those belonging to the two men in suits.

In a panic, she activated her semblance, propelling her in the direction of the inn, ignoring the voices of her pursuers, yelling at her to stop.

After a short while when she was confident she had put enough distance between the,, Weiss came to a halt as she had run out of stamina, not used to activating her semblance for extended periods of time.

Not wanting to be caught out again, she took a small detour she had discovered that led to her and Jaune's temporary abode.

Suddenly remembering something, she looked down at the bags she had forgotten she was carrying and was surprised to see they seemed to still be in perfect condition.

That was until she looked at the underside of her 'Garnets and Garments' bag to reveal the sizable rip that must have torn whilst she was running.

She opened the bag from the top and gasped when occupying it was a solitary glove, missing it's partner.  
>It would take days to search the town for it and with those men lurking around, it would be near impossible!<p>

While the heiress was pacing up and down, distraught that Jaune would remain shivering underneath a blanket for days to come, she failed to hear the footsteps from the opposite end of the alley, or the ones sneaking up from behind.

"Drop something?" Weiss froze as she heard the sly voice of the tall man in the suit.  
>She turned her head slowly to see him approaching with a familiar lavender covered glove in hand.<p>

"That's not yours!" the heiress hissed, earning a smirk from the man edging closer to her by the second.  
>"Oh yeah, then whose is it, then? They are men's gloves, you find yourself a lover-boy from the countryside?" he jeered, earning a fierce glare from the girl.<p>

"Well, you can explain it all to daddy just as soon as we get home, grab her Mitch!"  
>Weiss barely had enough time to react as two beefy arms emerged from behind her, the heiress managed to throw herself away, landing harshly on the stone but escaping his grasp.<p>

Taking her chance, Weiss scrambled to her feet before sprinting down yet another alley as the men followed in hot pursuit.

The darkess of the passage made it hard to navigate but she just had to keep on pressing forward into the unknown as she heard the cluttering and cursing of her followers.

Seeing a bright light to her left, the heiress sped after it, hoping to end up in a populated part of the village, only to have those hopes immediately crushed as the came into contact with a large, brick wall.

There was no other exit and she no longer had the energy to use her glyphs, fighting them was out of the question, so what else could she do?

She didn't have enough time to rack her brain for answers as she once again heard the sounds of leather against stone as they approached her position.

Seeing no way out of the situation, Weiss laid back against the wall and slid down into a fetal position, thinking of things to come.

She would be taken back to her father, who would be enraged at her disobedience and loss of the briefcase, she would never be allowed to leave without supervision and would be surprised if she was still allowed to train to become a huntress.

She paled when she remembered the other, most dreadful consequence, she would never see _him _again, the one who came to her aid when she needed it most, the one who dove headfirst into a frozen lake to protect her, who was changed forever because of her and still remained by her side. Her only true friend in the world.. lost just as easily as she found him.

A single tear made its way down her cheek as she looked down at her knees solemnly, she supposed it wasn't meant to be.

"Down here!" came a shout as the footsteps grew louder, Weiss picked herself back up, ready to accept her fate.  
>They got closer and closer as Weiss struggled to keep her emotions in check.<br>As they finally came into view, the tall man fixed her with a look of malice, running full speed towards her as his partner followed from behind.

Weiss closed her eyes, silently praying they could still be reasoned with, admittedly not having high hopes.  
>She heard the sounds of their rapid approach before there was a sudden wind and the sound of water freezing.<p>

"Wuh-oah!" came the cries of the two men as they slipped on the suddenly appearing ice beneath their feet, hitting the ground with a resounding thud and sliding towards the heiress before stopping at her feet, knocked out cold.

She was too fixated on the men to question the suddenly appearing ice or notice the teen in the black and lavender hoodie approaching her before leaning down to retrieve the glove from the unconscious henchman's hand before raising it up to the heiress.

"I-I'm guessing this is yours" he spoke, silently cursing the cold for messing up his entrance line.  
>The girl was broken out of her stupor as she stared up at the boy with glassy eyes.<br>"Jaune...?" she asked, not quite believing her eyes.  
>"Um... I think so" he looked quizzical "you okay?" he rested a hand on her shoulder, one the girl noticed was shaking slightly.<p>

"C-come on, let's get b-back..." he spoke, leading her back in silence as Weiss latched onto his arm in an attempt to keep him warm, not bothering him in the slightest.

* * *

><p>"That was stupid, reckless, dim-witted, irresponsible, childish, careless and completely jovial!" Jaune winced at the harsh string of words before she composed herself "But... thank you, regardless"<p>

After a thankfully uneventful return trip, the pair had headed back up to their room, Jaune being forced back into his bed whilst Weiss sat on the corner.

The boy chuckled before remembering the two men.  
>"Weiss, why were those men after you?" he asked, earning a hesitant look from the heiress as she considered her next words.<p>

"I will tell you" the boy leaned closer, expectantly, waiting a good couple of seconds growing slightly impatient before the girl shook her head, "just... not today, okay?" Jaune fell back, goraning inwardly but didn't say anything, whilst wanting to know more, Jaune knew it had been a tiring day for her, both physically and psychologically, so he put the matter to rest.

"More importantly, I have something for you!" the girl announced cheerily before taking out the lavender pair of finger-less gloves and presenting them to him.

"They should help you with the cold, though I'm not sure if you'll feel warm exactly..." she trailed off before she suddenly felt something take hold of both her hands, looking down she noticed they were the pure white hands of the boy in the bed caressing her own. They weren't warm, exactly the opposite but somehow.. it felt nice.

"They're perfect" he proclaimed with a small grin and attempted to place them onto his hands, though struggling to do so as the shaking hadn't died down yet.

Rolling her eyes at the boy's struggle, deciding to lend a hand "Here"  
>She took the first and helped place it onto Jaune's right hand, lingering there for a moment before quickly grabbing the other one and doing the same.<p>

As soon as she let go, they suddenly emanated a warm glow before settling down as an odd sensation coursed through him as a grin graced his features.  
>"They work! I actually don't feel it anymore, it's like the cold just faded away!" he exclaimed in glee as Weiss couldn't help but smile tiredly before her eyes started feeling heavy.<p>

"Naturally... you should be very... very... thankful" she spoke, progressively getting slower as she crawled onto the bed.

"Uh... Weiss?" But he got no response as the heiress laid down besidehim, their noses nearly touching and fell into a deep sleep. Jaune chuckled quietly before covering her with a spare blanket and turning off the light.  
>"Good night, Snow Angel"<p>

Both teens slept peacefully, comforted by each other's presence, savoring the what would turn out to be their last night together until two years later.. at Beacon Academy.

* * *

><p><strong>Phew! That was a long chapter to write! The next chapter is the final one in this prelude arc, then it's off to Beacon to meet the rest of the gang.<strong>

**Anyhow, I sincerely hope you enjoyed this chapter and will continue to follow the story as it progresses.  
><strong>**Many thanks! -RareNyte**


	3. Meltdown: Part One

**Once again, thank you guys so much for the support, I really appreciate it.**

**Slight change, after seeing how long this chapter went on for, I decided to split it into two parts, but don't worry, the rest will be uploaded as soon as I can.  
><strong>

**Hope you enjoy!  
><strong>

* * *

><p><em>"Stupid human, you knew you had no chance"<em>

_She had to stop this, this couldn't happen!_

_She acted without thinking, suddenly facing the attacker._

_"W-Weiss... no, run!"_

_She wouldn't let this happen_

_There was no turning back now_

_He readied his sword and rifle,_

_She raised her rapier,_

_Then came the gunfire._

* * *

><p>Weiss let out a small yawn as flickered her eyes open, having temporarily forgotten about the events that transpired the previous day.<p>

In fact, she was more concerned with the fact that her face was no more than a few inches away from the boy's beside her.  
>She instantly sat up in a panic as she tried to remember how she had gotten into such a position.<br>Prompting memories of returning home, giving Jaune his gift then... deciding in her half awake state to lay down beside him for the night to return to her.

She groaned, holding her hand to her head in embarrassment, she turned her attention back to him to see a small smile on his face, earning a suspicious glare from Weiss, hoping for his sake that he wasn't thinking about anything he wouldn't want to tell her about.

Removing the covers over her, Weiss headed over to where she left her bags, spending another day wearing her current combat dress was unthinkable in the state it was in.  
>Looking through her purchases from the other day, she found a pure white dress similar to her usual except with black edgings and buttons accompanied by a similarly colored skirt with dark frills.<p>

Happy with her choice, the heiress laid it down on the bedside table before heading in to the bathroom to freshen up, this was the first time since coming to the Bed and Breakfast that Jaune was able to come with her into town and she wanted to make the most out of it.

After all...

The images of the two men in black suits chasing her through the town resurfaced, sending a chill down her spine.  
><em><br>"Didn't you hear me? I said we were ordered to get you home"  
><em>_  
>"Afraid so, daddy wants you back as soon as possible, okay?"<em>

_"You can explain it all to daddy just as soon as we get home"_

She looked over to the boy resting peacefully in the bed with a downcast expression.

Their time together may be running out sooner than she'd expected...

* * *

><p>For the first time in the last few days, Jaune woke without the unwanted greeting of the blistering cold or aching from frozen lake related injuries, instead, this morning he opened his eyes with a smile on his face as the sun crept through the window, giving the room a beautiful golden glow, he didn't feel compelled to wrap himself up in the duvet to keep himself warm, thanking the lavender accessories covering his fists.<p>

Yes, for the first day since the incident, Jaune felt nothing but happiness and tranquility...

Only to be interrupted as he was struck by a flying bag, hitting him square in the forehead and leaving him dazed as he attempted to identify the white blur standing before him with it's arms crossed in an impatient manner.

"You really know how to sleep in, don't you?" she complained, quite rightfully so, Jaune had to admit as he checked the clock on the bedside table, it was already past mid-day.

"Ah, sorry, uh.. did we have plans or something?" he asked innocently, earning narrowed eyes from the heiress.  
>"What? Did you think I would allow you to laze around here all day after you got better?"<br>Jaune flinched slightly before looking like he finally noticed something.

"Is that a new dress?" he asked, eyeing up the girl's new outfit with curiosity.  
>"Obviously" She scoffed "Tears and dirt don't exactly scream sophistication, you know? You should get changed too, I refuse to appear in public accompanied by someone dressed so scruffily" she pointed down at the boy's lap where the projectile she had hurled turned out to be a bag from a nearby clothing outlet.<p>

Inside was a fresh pair of darkly colored jeans and a light blue long sleeved shirt, considerably more plain than the clothes the heiress adorned, though he supposed that was only natural, he didn't really like fancy get ups anyway.

After grabbing his hoodie, he headed to the bathroom for a quick change before holstering his sword and shield, just in case, and joining Weiss as she led him out into the town.

* * *

><p>Jaune couldn't help but feel joyful as he walked the familiar streets.<p>

Not really having the opportunity to enjoy it earlier, Jaune took in his surroundings with a large smile, even though it had only been a few days, he had started to miss the rest of this place, the shops, the friendly community, his friends, his... family.

Jaune's gleeful expression faded slightly when he remembered that he still hadn't checked in with them, he felt guilty when he thought about how worried they must be. He did want to see them again, his parents and his seven sisters, however...

He looked down at himself with a slight frown, seeing his pale skin blend in with the snow they were treading through, how would he explain this?  
>Would they even recognize him?<p>

He subconsciously pulled his hood down, concealing his features further, not going unnoticed by the heiress who looked at him in concern.

With a sudden thought, Jaune looked to the girl on his left.

"Uh... a bit late now, but we _are _going somewhere right?" he questioned, as Weiss seemed to be leading him in circles, having ended up in the town square for the second time.

The heiress fixed him with a stare that seemed to question his intelligence "What kind of question is that? Of course we are!" she spoke indignantly, before adding quietly "I just need to find it first..."

Following a disbelieving expression from the hooded teen, she sighed exasperatedly.  
>"I... was hoping we could find someplace quiet..."she admitted.<br>Jaune disregarded the vague answer, scratching his head.

"Yeah, this village is kind of a family place so there aren't a lot of places like-" Jaune paused mid sentence, pressing his fist into his palm, earning an odd look from the heiress.

"I GOT IT!" he exclaimed, earning a few odd stares from nearby pedestrians and a light smack on the head by a red faced heiress.  
>"Shush! Can't you be a little more subtle?!" Jaune ignored the rebuke as he took hold of Weiss's hand in excitement.<br>"Jaune?! What are you-?"  
>"Come on!" with that, the boy began speeding off towards the woods with the girl in tow, yelling at him to slow down.<p>

Both of them ignorant of the low growl coming from their observer as he began to track them.

* * *

><p>Weiss had given up trying to reason with the ecstatic teen, allowing him to drag her for a good minute until he finally came to a stop and sighed with content.<br>"Someplace like this?" he motioned towards the sight in front of him, they were standing upon a high hill, coated with pure white snow, where at the top was an edge from which you could see the entire village.

Weiss managed to make out the 'Garnets and Garments' looking out of place as ever, the town square where the little brat- little _child _almost got her captured and the Bed and Breakfast in the center. It truly was a breathtaking sight, she gazed at it in wonder, winter wonderlands were not uncommon for the heiress but they were always made to be that way, this was different, it was natural beauty.

"So..." Jaune began, taking a seat on top of the hill "What did you want to talk about?" Weiss stared back blankly, having temporarily forgotten the reason they were there in the first place.

"Right well," she cleared her throat, placing herself down as he perched on the edge, her legs suspended below.  
>"I was just thinking that we should get properly acquainted, after all, we have been through a lot but I still don't know that much about you"<p>

Jaune looked contemplative "Well, I mean what else is there? I'm Jaune, I come from... well here, I'm a- well I _was _a natural blond, I have seven sisters, I like comic books... uh, oh and I recently discovered I can control snow and ice! So that's a thing..." Jaune turned with an uneasy smile only to be met by unimpressed eyes as the heiress looked disappointed with his answer.

"Is that it?" she asked in a highly underwhelmed tone.

"Hey, it's hard to come up with stuff like that on the spot, what about you?" the boy pouted, crossing his arms.

"Oh?" Weiss spoke with a challenging expression "I am Weiss Schnee, heiress of the Schnee Dust Company, I am a huntress in training, my semblance is my array of multi-functional glyphs and I fight with a Multi Action Dust Rapier" she finished confidently.

"...fine, you win" Jaune sighed, knowing he was beaten.

"Come on, it's easy, just say what makes you you, for example" she encouraged, pointing to the holster on the boy's waist "are you planning to become a huntsman?"  
>Jaune's expression faltered slightly as he glanced down at the sheathed sword and shield.<p>

"I... I don't know" Weiss was surprised by the answer but didn't interject as he thought about his words "Well I come from a long line of huntsman, all strong and brave, they were heroes. But..." his eyes drifted down from the heiress' to the hill beneath them as he continued  
>"I'm just not sure if I can live up to them, I've never attended any kind of combat school or had any <em>real <em>training, my dad showed me some basics but he's always busy, I just don't know if I'm up for it, you know?

No matter who's helping me, I can never be anything better than mediocre, I'm just not cut out for it..." he finished solemnly, not turning back to the girl sat beside him, guessing she was realizing just how pathetic he was.

"You idiot"

Jaune's eyes widened at the unexpected response. He turned to see her raising an eyebrow at him.

"Not cut out for it? Never better than mediocre?

Minutes after we met, you managed to elude a group of trained assassins, carrying me half the way, then you tackled one of them into a frozen lake, which was still a stupid thing to do but I digress, you managed to hold your own against him and using you new power, managed to drive him and those other rapscallions back into the dirt holes they crawled out from.

And if that isn't enough, even when you were frozen half to death, you still somehow managed to come to my aid when I needed it most. I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but right now... I feel like I can really trust you to have my back"

Jaune gaped at the girl beside him, he often only heard this kind of thing from his mother, not that he'd care to admit that. However he had grown to dismiss it as a mother's obligation, whereas this girl, who usually did not hold back with her opinions, was openly praising him.  
>It was a new and not at all unpleasant experience.<p>

"Forget being cut out for it, to me, you are already a huntsman, willing to risk your life to save another's, I find that admirable. To be perfectly honest, I'm a little envious that it comes so naturally to you"

She admitted truthfully, turning towards him with a serious expression, putting a hand under his chin, once again getting to eye level with him as deep blue met icy once more.

"So stop doubting yourself all the time, you're more capable than you think, right now, the only thing holding you back is yourself"

There was a small silence following that as Jaune took in everything he had been told with a small smile as Weiss looked over the town with an unreadable expression.

Looking up at her, Jaune was once again captivated by the heiress in white, whilst she could be cold at times, she wasn't heartless, a look down at the lavender gloves covering his hands were proof enough of that, not to mention the countless hours she spent attending to him after entering the Bed and Breakfast a few days prior.

"Weiss" he spoke up, breaking the silence as the heiress turned to see deep blue eyes, full of warmth staring right at her.  
>"Thank you for everything" he said, the words few in number but carrying more emotion and meaning than a hundred from one of her suitors attempting to marry into the family.<br>Unlike their business proposal like methods of courtship, this felt completely genuine, straight from the boy's heart, creating a rather odd emotion to stir in her own.

She simply nodded at him before the two were sat in silence once more, both feeling elated now that they now had a mutual understanding of each other. Jaune was happy that he managed to see past the cold exterior and find out what she truly thought of him, while Weiss was happy that she began to understand how the boy's thought process worked, self deprecating as he was, he truly wanted to help others and not for selfish reasons.

Both now relished in their renewed understanding of one another, that was until a thought suddenly struck the heiress as she tried and failed to find a memory to prove her wrong, finding nothing, realizing for the first time that there was a sizable gap in her knowledge concerning the hooded boy next to her.

"Hey, Jaune" she spoke slowly, surprised at the fact she hadn't asked sooner.

"Hm?" he looked to her in curiosity, confused by the troubled look on the heiress's face.

"What's your last na-" As if fate had deemed it so, the question was never answered as the heiress suddenly sprung onto the boy, sending the pair of them tumbling to the side, just out of the rifle's range, leaving behind a scorched piece of ground where the two had been just sitting two seconds prior.

"Damn, I'm surprised you managed to dodge that in time. But know this" The startled duo looked behind to see a shape emerging from the shadows of the forest, revealing a tall faunus with dyed red hair and a pair of horns that seemed akin to a bull's. He was clad in a black trench coat decorated with red flame-like designs.  
>However the most significant trait was his mask that covered his upper face, resembling a creature of Grimm.<p>

"I _never _miss twice" he growled threateningly, raising his weapon once more, a black sheathe that apparently doubled as a rifle, containing a blood red sword that emanated malice from one glance.

Weiss and Jaune quickly jumped up and took defensive stances, Weiss equipping her rapier as Jaune enlarged his shield before pulling out his family heirloom, holding it the way his father had briefly demonstrated to him long ago.

Not wanting to let him take another shot, Weiss activated her semblance, revolving the fire dust into the rapier's chamber then propelling herself towards the faunus as she struck forward, only for the target to sidestep at the last second, causing her to pass him harmlessly, losing her footing.

He smirked, wanting to take advantage of the situation, reaching to bunt her with the sheathe rifle, only to be blocked by a large silver shield as the boy knelt between the two.

"I guess I'll have to get rid of you first" he spoke threateningly, unnerving the inexperienced fighter as he was grabbed by the neck and hurled back towards the edge of the large hill, a few feet further and he would have surely plummeted down the sleep slope.

The heiress, having regained her composure, waving her rapier in the air, creating 6 light blue stars, sending forward several rays of light as she swung down, the rays seemed to be headed straight for the faunus, only for him to easily dodge it once again as it instead impacted the boy behind him, suspending him in the air, fixed in place.

"Thanks for the help, your highness" the faunus snarked raising his sheathe, striking the helpless boy and sending him tumbling down the hill before rolling into the murky woods surrounding the area.

"Jaune!" the heiress exclaimed as he fell out of view, cursing her carelessness before her reflexes kicked in once again as she quickly raised her rapier, blocking a strike from the sword wielder, chuckling darkly.  
>"You think you can afford to focus on other things?" he jeered as Weiss jumped back, fixing the attacker with an intense glare.<br>"Now shall we continue?"

* * *

><p>Jaune struggled to retain consciousness as he laid against the base of a tree, too dizzy to stand. He hadn't suffered any major damage, but the small injuries and aches remained, reminding him of the dire need to get his aura unlocked. Not that he planned to make a habit of these kinds of situations, even if fate saw things differently.<p>

Hearing the sound of gunfire and the metal clangs echoing from on top the hill, the boy took a breath before forcing himself up, using the trunk as support as he tried to fend off the drowsiness that came upon him.

With a grunt, he began to tread towards the sounds of battle, eventually reaching a gap in the trees, seeing marks in the snow where he must have collided with the ground, wincing at the thought.

Just as he was about to start climbing the hill, he paused.

He thought he could just make out the sound of something whizzing towards him, then the high pitch sound whir as a black pistol went sailing past his head.  
>Taken by surprise, he just barely managed to jump out of the way before being entangled by the ribbon attached to the pistol.<p>

Looking back, Jaune saw the pistol fly into the hand of a girl around his age with long, wavy black hair, wearing a white buttoned up vest, black stockings that gradually faded into purple and a curious bow upon her head. Though to Jaune, her most striking feature was her eyes, the bright amber irises seemed to glow in the dark of the woods as the held up the pistol yet again.

Jaune just managed to raise his shield in time as the projectiles failed to penetrate it, though oddly, Jaune noted that she had aimed low, towards his legs rather than a vital spot. He couldn't delve further into that line of thought as he heard the sound of metal compartments detaching, he lowered his shield to see the girl running straight at him now equipped with a katana and what seemed to resemble a large cleaver.

Raising his shield yet again, he struggled to block he oncoming barrage of slices and slashes from the double handed attack, he was slowly being pushed backwards, he gritted his teeth, aware that if he lost his balance, it would likely mean the end of him.

The onslaught seemed to last minutes before Jaune saw it, she had apparently grown tired and swung her blade clumsily, causing it to bounce off the shield, leaving her open. His adrenaline began to rush as he went for the chance, swinging his sword in her direction and managing to come into contact, however he was unable to rejoice in his small triumph as the 'girl' in front of him vanished into thin air.

His confusion at the phenomenon was quickly taken advantage of as he was hit with the blunt edge of the cleaver, sending him reeling to the ground before he instinctively rolled away so that she couldn't deal the final blow.

He quickly stumbled to his feet, casting a glance of his attacker patiently waiting. Something was wrong...  
>"Why are you doing this?" he asked, temporarily lowering his shield, to any huntsman, that would be suicidal, but Jaune had a nagging feeling about this one.<br>"You don't need to know" she responded coolly before raising her katana once again "Leave and you will not be harmed"

Without having to think, Jaune shook his head.  
>"Sorry, but I'm not going to let you take her" he stated, raising his weapons once again.<br>The girl showed no emotion before narrowing her eyes "Very well"

With that she disappeared from in front of him, leading him to rapidly check in every direction for signs of the stealthy assailant. The sound of rustling leaves alerted him before the pistol whip was hurled towards him again, this time only missing by a few inches before being pulled back rapidly, causing the gun to fire several rounds that he blocked successfully.

Though just as quickly, he heard the crack as the pistol was flung from behind with the blade end heading straight for his back, he swiftly parried it with his blade, being forced to duck as the trigger was pulled once more before it returned to the darkness of the treetops.

If things continued like this, he would run out of energy sooner than he'd like, definitely sooner than the girl currently leaping between the branches high above him.  
>"I'm not running, so you might as well tell me why you're after her" he called upwards, making sure she heard him, he felt something was iffy here, and seeing as he wouldn't be winning this fight any time soon, might as well have a chat.<p>

There was a long pause as even the rustling had died down, Jaune readied himself, preparing for the inevitable sneak attack.  
>"...She is a target of value to the White Fang" Jaune blinked in surprise, not actually expecting an answer.<br>"So... the assassins failed so you were sent in their place, huh?" he looked up, though not really knowing where to fix his gaze.  
>"What are you going to do with her?"<p>

He was met with silence, then with the edge of a blade as she suddenly emerged from a nearby bush, without thinking the boy blocked it, but his shield was still at his side.  
>The attacker looked in shock as Jaune gripped the edge of the blade, wondering why it hadn't sliced the boy's hand clean off, only then noticing the heavy frost that now coated his right hand.<p>

Both looked in awe as the frost spread to cover his entire hand in a protective layer of ice like a gauntlet made entirely from ice.  
>Even the blade started to freeze up too, prompting the girl to quickly draw it back, retreating a few steps.<p>

"Why do you want her?" he repeated, with an icy tone to his voice that surprised the girl with the bow.

"The Schnees are famed for their cruel treatment of faunus workers" she replied, looking warily at her target, taken aback by the development.  
>"So, you decide to kidnap an innocent, young girl?" he spoke with distaste as the faunus retreated back into the shadows, wanting to keep her distance for the time being.<p>

"Don't you think that's a bit unfair?" Jaune called out, now more interested in the talk than the fight.  
>"Unfair? The faunus are faced with injustice every day, we are always looked down upon as lesser beings" came the voice from above.<br>"And that justifies senseless crime?" he retorted, a temper beginning to rise, evident in his tone.

"...it's the only way, to be respected we have to use more forceful methods, otherwise nothing will change!"  
>"Don't give me that! These methods are wrong, and you know it!" that last comment made the rustling cease as the faunus failed to respond<br>"I know you don't agree with it, if you did, I would be dead by now!" the girl paused, the boy was right, she hated the way things were, but she just didn't feel right about killing for freedom. To her, freedom through bloodshed was no freedom at all, but what other option was there?

"The White Fang aren't freedom fighters any more, they are a bunch of crazed terrorists!"  
>"Shut up! Don't act like you know the first thing about us!" she yelled in anger, they weren't evil or crazed, maybe misguided but...<br>"Their methods will end up in nothing but conflict! They want the humans gone, dead! Are you okay with letting all those people die?"

The faunus held her head in her hands, trying to block out the boy  
>"It's either them or us!" she shouted, not quite believing it herself, just wanting this to end quickly.<p>

"I said don't give me that!" the boy roared as he raised his fist and hit the ground below with a heavy punch

Jaune looked down at his feet as a tremor shook the ground beneath them, the faunus quickly gripped the branch she stood upon for support.

There was an almighty crack as the spikes of ice tore the ground open, extending in every direction, towards the trees, demolishing them as they crossed its path.  
>The girl yelped before falling to the ground as a large spire of ice crashed into the tree she was perched upon.<p>

She landed roughly before hastily trying to pick herself up as trees fell around her, letting the light of day shine into this part of the forest, illuminating the two brawlers, both heavily panting.

The faunus looked in awe at the colossal ice structures that protruded from the ground where the boy had planted his fist.  
>The boy was definitely powerful, if he could control that ability, he would probably make an outstanding huntsman.<p>

After the tremors died down, eyes of amber met dark blue as they exchanged looks, she laid there dumbfounded, unsure of what to do or say when the boy cleared his throat.

"Like I said, don't say things like that,

I know you aren't that cruel, you wouldn't knowingly let innocent people die, so don't pretend. Sure, things may look pretty bad for faunus right now, but terrorism is _never _the answer. If you believe that, and I think you do, don't bend to their ways. Find your own path, and follow it, it'll be much harder, for sure, and it may take a lot longer, but do you really want equality built upon foundations of bloodshed and fear?"

"But...what can I accomplish alone?" the girl attempted to counter as Jaune thought back to the words that were said to him a few days earlier.

" 'With that attitude, you'll never get anything right. Don't run away just because it scares you. You have to overcome this, you can do it, I know it, you just have to believe in yourself a little' " he repeated, remembering every word of it proudly.

With that, he turned away from the girl, heading off to the hill he had been thrown from with newly found determination, leaving the faunus to her conflicting  
>thoughts.<p>

Without getting up, she looked at one of the Ice spires, seeing a cold, calculating girl staring back at her, willing to do anything to achieve equality for her people. Was that who she really was, or who she thought she was? Was it who she tried to convince herself she was?

She clenched her fist as the boy had, within 5 minutes of meeting her, made her question her entire belief system and doubt who she really was and what she stood for.

She had to admit, he was good.

She looked down at herself, laying on the cold snow floor, her life spared after a verbal beatdown by the very person she had been ordered to take out... feeling nothing but shame and guilt.

_'Blake Belladonna, what have you become?'_ she thought to herself as she closed her eyes, her world fading to black.

**To be continued...**


	4. Meltdown: Part Two

**Finally, the conclusion to this prelude arc, hope you enjoy! Please Follow/Favorite if you want and leave a Review with what you think :)**

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><p>There was another crack as a bullet whizzed past her, barely missing her left ear. She knew now to flip backwards after he took a shot like that, her hypothesis proven true when she heard metal slicing the air behind her.<p>

This was a dangerous situation, the attacker had obviously seen more battles than the heiress, his techniques were clearly often practiced as he carried them out with accuracy and brutal efficiency. However it didn't seem that his weapon was too complicated, he could either use it as a sword or a shotgun, that was it. Slowly, Weiss believed she was getting used to his attack pattern.

Weiss once again tried desperately to remember her training, losing her composure in a fight with someone with skills of such a caliber would prove fatal.  
>She took her stance, holding her rapier up to her chest as she focused her eyes on the faunus in front of her.<p>

The older boy showed no signs of tiring as he rushed forward, unsheathing his sword seemingly in the blink of an eye before stabbing straight at the target, no longer caring about taking her alive. Her family was nothing but a bunch of manipulative bastards that deserved everything they got.

Weiss quickly saw the familiar movements and stepped to the side, just out of harms way, mimicking the dodge the attacker had used before.  
>But just as he seemed to pass her, he changed direction mid air, swinging his sword at her, making her spring backwards to avoid it.<p>

The faunus chuckled as he sheathed his blade once more, had he known she was trying to predict his moves? The heiress narrowed her eyes in suspicion, now knowing she couldn't win with a cheap tactic like that.

Weiss instead decided to be the one to take the initiative while he was still underestimating her and attack with full power.  
>Closing her eyes, she thought up a rough battle plan before opening her eyes and staring at the faunus, watching his next move.<p>

He paid her actions no mind as he rushed forward, gripping his sheathe with an emotionless expression.  
>Waiting for the right time, Weiss stood where she was, unmoving.<p>

The faunus saw this as an admission of defeat but that wasn't going to stop him now, the Schnee would die here, nobody would blame him if he said he was left no alternative.

He smirked before unsheathing his weapon, preparing for the final strike, thrusting it forward, waiting for the satisfying sounds of metal cutting flesh... hearing nothing.

Looking up in bewilderment, the space his target had occupied just seconds ago was now empty. Then he sensed her, directly behind him.

Weiss brought Myretenaster down with a cry as the pair were surrounded by a circle of fire, bright orange embers serving as a barrier, illuminating them both.  
>The faunus looked around, not wanting to risk getting touched by the flames, looked back to find the heiress was now suspended in the air with a brilliant white glyph beneath her feet.<p>

She fixed him with eyes of determination before she vanished once again, re-appearing directly behind him as the faunus suddenly felt a surge of pain like a blade slicing him, but the girl wasn't finished, rapidly attacking the faunus from every angle as he took every hit without dodging once.

Weiss continued on, unaware of the bright red light that emanated from the faunus's sheathe and hair as he absorbed the attack.

The onslaught finally came to an end when Weiss propelled herself away from her opponent before turning back and gasping in shock.  
>There, glaring her with a scowl was the faunus, still standing, she could see where she had dealt some damage but it was nothing critical.<p>

Then, without a word, he raised his sheathe and pointed in her direction as she was temporarily too stunned to react.  
>With an unnoticeable trick of his hand, he channeled all the kinetic energy he had taken in from the attack into his blade, looking up at his prey once more.<p>

"This is the end for you!" he spoke, rather dramatically which Weiss would have found laughable in any other situation.  
>There was a deafening roar as the energy was unleashed with a battle cry as he swung his sword through the air as the sky seemed to turn red.<p>

Weiss closed her eyes, unable to get away, this was it, this was going to be it!

_**'CRACK'**_

Weiss slowly opened her eyes, expecting to see a large chunk of her missing, her outfit permanently stained with blood.  
>What she was definitely not expecting the sight in front of her, which even her faunus opponent gaped at before grunting in anger, having been denied his kill.<p>

Directly between the two, having absorbed the blast, was a barrier... of _solid ice._

She was lost in her amazement at the sudden icy structure that she didn't notice the boy coming up behind her until he tapped her on the shoulder, causing her to turn to him with a gasp.

Before her was a boy about her age with a snow white complexion and similarly colored hair that was partially concealed his black and lavender hoodie.  
>"You okay?" he asked casually, as if he hadn't just saved her life by creating a wall of ice strong enough to block a supercharged burst of kinetic energy.<p>

"Fine, but, I thought you were thrown off the cliff..." she questioned, confused at the lack of injuries present on the boy's body.  
>"Yeah, I was, but is diving off cliffs really something new to me?" he smiled jokingly.<br>Weiss sighed, she had to admit, he _was_ making a habit out of it.

"Now" Jaune stated, standing and turning to face the red haired faunus that stood a few steps away, watching the two carefully.  
>"I defeated your partner, you're on your own, why not go get her and get out of here?"<p>

For the first time, the two thought they saw a flicker of emotion course through the faunus at the mention of his partner, though this was forgotten when he shook his head and began to speak in his regular cold tone.

"I'm not going anywhere" with that, he prepared for yet another fight, to the dismay of Jaune who just wanted to get Weiss out of there as soon as possible.

"Jaune, be careful" the heiress held Jaune's arm, eyeing him seriously, to which he smiled confidently.  
>"Come on, just who do you think I am?"<br>"A reckless rogue that acts purely on guesses and whims without regard for his own safety or the consequences of his decisions" Weiss deadpanned, dealing a light blow to the boy's pride.

"But..." she continued, looking down "you're also my friend" Jaune looked at her, both surprised and joyful at her words of concern.  
>"So don't get yourself killed" she ordered as the boy chuckled.<p>

Deciding to give her a dose of her own medicine, he lifted her chin so that their eyes of contrasting shades of blue met, one pair full of worry, the other full of warmth and innocence.

"It's gonna be okay"

Jaune stood and prepared to fight, not able to ignore the heavy amount of pressure that the faunus was emitting.

"...Probably" he corrected himself, just quietly enough so the heiress wouldn't hear.

With a sudden snarl, the faunus charged at Jaune as the boy swiftly rolled to the side, pulling out his sword whilst raising his other arm when Weiss noticed something.

He hadn't equipped his shield, had he just forgotten, or could it be that-?

Her suspicions were soon proved correct when an attempt at a strike from the faunus's sheathe was blocked as Jaune's right hand was suddenly completely engulfed in ice.

With a low growl, he aimed the sheathe at the boy before firing the blade itself, its hilt burying into Jaune's forehead as he was sent flying backwards, prompting the red-head to aim a kick at his abdomen, sending him tumbling a few more feet before coming into contact with the base of a tree, knocking the air out of him as he lay collapsed upon the floor.

Already bored of the fight, the faunus aimed his rifle at the defenseless boy, only stopping when a bright light appeared from beneath him, another glyph!  
>With a burst of light, he was hurled into the sky, just managing to correct himself in the air and land on his two feet, sending a death glare to the heiress before turning to where Jaune was.<p>

Only to see no one there as an ice covered fist impacted the left side of his face, sending him spiraling backwards into the snow, becoming disoriented as he felt where the punch had landed, feeling both intense pain and freezing cold from the touch.

Feeling his temper rising, the faunus turned away from the boy, his glare now settled upon the heiress who had been watching the fight ensue intently before picking himself up and beginning to sprint towards her in an attempt to snatch her as she was stunned.

The girl only noticed when he was a few steps away, it was too late, he chuckled as he began to close their distance, although his expression turned from a smirk to a look of panic as he came to a rough stop before he was impaled on the large spike of ice that had suddenly sprung up from the ground, separating him from his target.

Then, one after another, blades of hardened snow and ice came shooting up from the ground, causing the faunus to rely on his instincts as he jumped backwards to avoid them.

_Penitentes, _Weiss seemed to recall the official name for that kind of structure, though she found it far more likely that Jaune was simply thinking of them as spikes of ice, either way, they seemed to be enough to give the faunus a run for his money as he struggled to avoid them.

Once he was a fair distance away from her, the ground stopped shaking and no more spikes spurted up from the ground, he checked his surroundings carefully before he was distracted by something.

A wind was blowing directly towards him, but it was considerably colder than normal and it sent a chill down his spine.

Turning round, he saw the source of the cold air, Jaune stood there, fixing him with an ice cold gaze that seemed to fix him in place. Was he taking advantage of his power to use as a threatening technique? As unconventional as it sounds, the mist surrounding him and the hard stare were certainly unsettling, even for him.

_"Member of the White Fang" _he began in an icy tone, fitting the description the assassin had given the faunus after their failed mission.  
><em>"I can control snow and ice and do whatever I want with them, they can be the perfect defense and a pretty strong offense,as you have kinda seen already, there are a lot of things you can do with both, now look around you, what do you see?"<em>

The tone must have gotten to the red-headed faunus as he darted his eyes round, finally realizing that covering the ground, freezing the water and chilling the air as far as the eye could see, was snow and ice.

However, the faunus knew just how experienced Jaune was with it,  
>"You only recently got that power, didn't you? The assassin assured me you didn't have it at first, so you must not have had much time to practice it, let alone perfect it. So looking around... are you sure you can handle this?" he jeered, the lack of response from Jaune proof enough that her was exactly right.<p>

"And not to mention..." he pointed at the heiress at the top of the hill "Can you ensure her safety if you do?"  
>Jaune's eyes widened as he realized how easy it would be to accidentally harm Weiss whilst she stood on the snow, he hadn't even been thinking of that when he summoned the spikes of ice from the ground earlier, it would have been too easy for one of them to get too close to her and... he winced at the thought.<p>

Jaune was silent as the faunus smiled before suddenly charging at the boy once again, who was not prepared and barely managed to raise his arm in time as the faunus brought down his sheathe upon him.

There was a resounding crack as Jaune grabbed his arm in pain, looking down he realized his arm was unprotected, he just couldn't get a grip on his power after hearing that he could have harmed Weiss.

The faunus smirked, taking full advantage of the situation, hitting the boy repeatedly with the butt of his rifle, knocking him down every time he tried to fight back, without his power, he was just as weak as any other human.

The boy coughed up blood, staining the pure white snow that lay around him. In his frustration, the faunus beat the boy over and over, kicking and butting him until he was definitely not getting back up again.

"Stupid human, you knew you had no chance" the faunus mocked as he prepared his rifle slowly, so that the human knew what was coming.  
>Weiss looked on in horror, she had to stop this, it couldn't happen!<p>

Using the remainder of her energy, she activated her semblance and sped over to the two boys with her rapier pulled back, ignoring the aches and pains, only focused on one thing. The faunus, hearing her coming, leapt back as she impacted the ground where he had been standing, taking a defensive position in front of Jaune.

It was finally her turn to protect _him._

"W-Weiss... no, run!" the boy choked, Weiss didn't respond, completely focused on the filthy faunus opposite her, she wouldn't let this happen, not to him!  
>The faunus said nothing, wanting to end this already, before resting his hand on the hilt of his sheathed blade.<p>

Weiss readied Myretenaster, making sure it had a sufficient amount of Dust before the two locked eyes, both watching for any suspicious movements as Weiss stood up from her position and got into her rehearsed stance.  
>There was no turning back now.<p>

In the blink of an eye, the two clashed, the sounds of two metal instruments clanging reverberated off the hilltop as the two were engaged in a deadly sword-fight, both panting heavily as the fighting grew more intense, neither fighter prepared to lose.

The wind began to pick up, though the duo didn't notice as they battled for supremacy endlessly, Weiss managing to counter his blows not that Jaune had tired him out.

At least, that's what she thought, she learnt that it was never wise to underestimate someone who has faced more battles than you, raising his sheathe also, the faunus went for a double strike, hitting with the sword to be blocked by her rapier, only to take out her legs with the rifle sheathe and butt the weapon out of her hands.

The faunus showed no hesitation as he raised the butt of the rifle, wanting to make it quick, but _very _painful.  
>A sudden burst of gunfire interrupted him as the rifle was shot out of his hands, landing in the snow bank to his right.<p>

Weiss turned to the direction the gunfire came from, seeing no figure but she could have sworn she saw a pair of luminescent amber eyes sneaking off into the darkness.

Just as the faunus was retrieving his weapon, the wind increased again, noticeably as both fighters looked up and were stunned at what they saw.  
>Rising over the high trees of the woods were airships wearing the Schnee symbol. Two transport and one...<p>

The faunus had to block with his sheathe as a hail of gunfire came upon him from the combat airship. He realized that the situation was only going to get worse, so, after a quick curse towards the two on the hill, sped off into the darkness of the woods, grumbling about Schnees and their big ass airships.

Now knowing that Jaune was safe, a weight lifted from her shoulders, leaving her light headed as she realized how tired she had become.  
>She looked over to the tree with half lidded eyes, seeing the white haired teen unconscious as she succumbed to the same, collapsing into a heap on he snowy ground, hearing the sounds of airships landing and men shouting fade out as she took a well deserved rest.<p>

"mmm-mph goodnight, Jaune" she murmured as the crafts touched down on the snowy hill.

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><p>"Let me get this straight, you ran into two fifteen year old kids, one a princess and the other a village boy, and <em>still <em>got your ass kicked?" the cat faunus chuckled obnoxiously, enjoying the pissed off look he was getting.

"Things got complicated..." Adam muttered as he laid back against the mess hall wall, admittedly relieved to be back at the White Fang HQ but still regrettig not shooting the heiress down when he got the chance.

Though now that he thought about it, did that gunfire really come from the airship? It wasn't even in view then...

A sudden thought struck him as he surveyed the crows populating the mess hall, seeing squirrel tails, fish gills, shark teeth, cow horns and he could have sworn he saw a pair of butterfly wings but no matter where he looked, he couldn't pick out a little bow.

His suspicions growing inside his head, he turned towards the gleeful feline with a contemplative expression.  
>"Where's Blake?"<p>

The other faunus looked at him in shock before his eyes turned sympathetic, only serving to unnerve Adam as he waited for an answer.  
>"Uh... sorry man. Didn't you hear?" the feline scratched his head uncomfortably before he was roughly grabed by the collar and held up against the wall.<br>"_ Where IS she?_"

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><p>"Miss Schnee? Hello, miss? Um, miss?" Weiss slowly opened her eyes, feeling rumbling beneath her and hearing he rattling of the airship, she turned to the voice beside her, trying to make it out.<br>"Jaune?" She asked, unaware of the situation.  
>" 'John'? Um, no. My name is Dr Maddison, your father has been very worried about you, young lady, I'm here to make sure you're A okay" he explained with a grin, but Weiss's mind was completely focused on something else entirely.<p>

"-your vitals are fine and your aura, while small has managed to-"  
>"Where is he?" She spoke seriously, surprising the doctor who gave her a curious look.<br>"Where is who, Miss Schnee? Your father? He is quite busy but I'm sure he'll come to see you as soon as-"

"Not him!" she exclaimed, trying to remove herself from the small medical stretcher she had been placed in as the doctor urged her to stay down.  
>She knew this would happen, there's no way she could run from them forever, the two men in suits were a painful reminder of that.<br>But couldn't they have had at least had one more day? She never got the chance to tell him why, he probably thought she abandoned him...

"Miss Schnee, please, just sit down, we are nearly there!" the doctor's words finally made it through as she calmed herself before laying herself down with an unreadable expression, but she would occasionally look restless or concerned.  
>Deciding he ought to look into it, the doctor addressed her.<p>

"So... who is it you want to find?" he asked, taking her by surprise, but it looked like she really wanted to get it out before she suddenly looked hesitant.  
>"...would you tell father?" she asked, he was about to tell her it was his responsibility when he saw the look in her eyes.<p>

It wasn't like a child who had done something guilty and didn't want their parent to find out, it was like she was concerned about something much larger.  
>He knew he was going to regret it later, but he allowed himself to give in to his emotions this once.<br>"I'll try to keep this between us"

The heiress looked skeptical at first but realizing it was the best she was going to get from him.  
>"He's... a boy" Typical, the doctor thought, though he supposed it was only natural at her age to start to get interested in such things<p>

"He has a worryingly pale complexion and snow white hair, but he used to have blonde hair, oh and he has deep blue eyes" the doctor raised an eyebrow at the description but listened on  
>"He uses a sword and can..." before continuing, she looked around the airship compartment, making sure no one else could hear<br>"He has the ability to control snow and ice"  
>This piqued the doctor's interest as he could likely come up with about a hundred inquiries into that, but a warning look from the heiress was all he needed to know this was also not to be shared.<p>

He nodded, making a quick note of everything she had told him, but he noticed a rather sizable gap in the details she had given him.  
>"Uh, anything else?" he asked, hoping she would remember the obvious, he was not so lucky.<br>"Well... he wears a black and purple hoodie, and dust infused gloves, but other than that..."

The doctor refused the urge to place a palm against his head  
>"Miss Schnee, do you by any chance know his name?" he asked hopefully, to which Weiss smiled bashfully before answering.<p>

"His name is Jaune, Jaune-" her expression turned somber as she stopped mid sentence, alerting the doctor who had only written the first name.  
>"I... don't know" she admitted, looking down all of a sudden.<p>

The doctor knew better not to question before finishing his notes

_Mystery Boy Report_

_'Worryingly' Pale_

_'Snow White' Hair_

_'Deep Blue' Eyes_

_Can control snow and ice?_

_Black and purple hoodie + gloves_

_Name: Jaune ?_

As he headed out the door, he was called back quietly, he turned to see the heiress looking at him with a fragile expression, a rare look for the daughter of someone so significant, a regal persona was a must, or so he had heard.

"Do you think we can find him?" she asked hopefully.

The doctor smiled reassuringly "Well your report was precise, doesn't sound like we'd miss him. Plus there's only one village he could be in right?"  
>She seemed to understand as she smiled at him once more, though you could tell she was still worried.<p>

"Don't worry, Miss Schnee, we'll find him, I'm sure of it"

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><p>The teen was silent as the professor continued to go into detail of the features of the school faculties, he couldn't help but be in awe at the quality of the different training grounds and classrooms, hell even the library was breathtaking!<p>

He was inwardly buzzing with excitement as he knew, after two years of hard work, he had finally made it.

"That to your left is the cafeteria, it is mostly a place where students can congregate and discuss current affairs, though in the past the room and it's food have been used for... more barbaric purposes. However we try to encourage students to leave their battles on the battlefield"  
>Glynda spoke knowingly as they found themselves back at the front gates.<br>Where waiting for them was their notoriously placid headmaster sipping his ever-present cup of coffee

"Ah, Glynda. Are you done showing him around?" he asked, addressing the teacher on the left.  
>"Yes, all except the dorm rooms, though he will have others to help him when it gets to that point" she responded, taking glances at the teen every so often.<p>

"True. I'm guessing teamwork will be something of a new experience for you, young man. But I assure you that you will soon adapt to the concept" he nodded confidently, finally addressing the hooded teen on the right. Well he would either adapt to it or die in the forest, a detail Ozpin opted not to inform him of.

"On that topic" Glynda interjected, catching the professor's attention "Have we made preparations for his... special circumstances?"

Ozpin sighed, taking another sip of his coffee "I still think it is unnecessary, there isn't a student that passes through these gates that isn't unique in their own right. There is no place you will find greater diversity and acceptance than at this academy"

"Still, you can't expect him to-"

"It's fine" the teen spoke up for the first time, silencing both of them "They're going to find out anyway and it's not like I'm embarrassed of it or anything, after all, it's what got me this far, I'm proud of it. " he spoke confidently  
>Ozpin smiled at that whilst Glynda still looked unsure.<p>

"Young man, on behalf of the staff here at Beacon Academy, I officially welcome you to our school" he announced with a prideful expression as the boy let out a small laugh before removing his hood, revealing rugged, snow white hair and deep blue eyes as he beamed brightly  
>"I'm glad to be here!"<p> 


	5. A Quick Author's Response

**A/N: Sorry, not a new chapter, but wanted to make this as a quick response to some valuable feedback I received.**

**Okay guys, last chapter caused some concerns with you that I want to try and clear up.**  
><strong>I had originally planned to start the story straight from Beacon, more fitting the description, but I decided to write a prelude arc in order to introduce how Jaune met Weiss, their bond and the complications of Jaune's power.<strong>

**So even though the main story will have always started around his time at Beacon, it doesn't mean the story will be entirely Beacon-centric so it will not be following the run of the series religiously, there is definitely room for some leeway to be creative with.**

**The abruptness of the two year skip near the end was intentionally meant to contain a bit of shock factor, although I ensure you that I will not be leaving a massive two year gap with no information, I plan to fill in the details as the chapters progress, alternating between moments in the gap and the current story-line with Jaune at Beacon.**

**For example, Jaune getting into Beacon and Weiss' ongoing search will be looked into in future chapters so I will not be leaving you in the dark.**

**I hope this doesn't seem like I am bothered by the reviews, constructive criticism is essential for a rookie writer like myself, and that is exactly what you guys are supplying me with :).**

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><p><strong>In response to a few specific reviews:<strong>

**Utoplex- Thank you as always for your opinion, I am glad you are enjoying the story and hope you continue to do so. About the teams, you make a very good argument. That would be interesting to say the least and it would likely open some doors, however when one door opens, several others close as they say. Nonetheless, I will keep what you have said in mind, thank you again.**

**luis014- Wow, that is impressive if English isn't your first, thank you for expressing your concerns, I sincerely appreciate it. As I mentioned earlier, the first 4 chapters were intended to be a prelude to the main part of the story, which will revolve around his time at Beacon, though as mentioned above, I will not simply ignore the blank space the time skip creates.**

**About Jaune's attitude towards his power, again you bring up a very valid point, that last part was admittedly the third draft for the ending scene and I wanted to upload at a suitable time and maybe I didn't put as much thought as I should have into that decision.**  
><strong>However, whilst he said he wasn't ashamed of it, that doesn't mean he wanted to flaunt it around, don't worry , he won't exactly be using it as a conversation starter.<strong>

**Also, whilst he is his own person, that is not to say Weiss will share his views on the matter...**

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><p><strong>If anybody else has concerns, please post a review and let me know, I think responding in a chapter will be a one-off and from now on I will either respond through PM or in the review section if the information would be useful for more than one person.<strong>

**Not to sound like a broken record, but thank you all once again for your ongoing support!**

**Next chapter, we will begin the transition into Beacon, though don't expect the Emerald Forest Arc _just _yet ;)**

**Thank you for reading! - RareNyte**


	6. Two Winters Later

Ozpin smiled as he took another sip from his coffee, observing the silent teen opposite him with interest, his focus directed to the way the boy seemed to retain a cool composure despite the tension the professor had been attempting to instill within the dark setting of his office, either that or he was too dim to notice it, though Ozpin prayed it was the former.

His eyes narrowed as he felt a slight chill emanating from the teen before he frowned in concentration as the temperature returned to normal, he obviously possessed a unique ability and had worked at it to a considerable extent, but where he saw prowess, Ozpin also noticed potential for improvement, there was always room for fine tuning.

Oh yes, he would definitely do.

"So.." the boy started awkwardly , earning a 'hm?' from the professor "I'm really happy you let me in here and all, but you still haven't told me why. I mean, I haven't been in any tournaments or anything and I haven't even been to any combat schools" he looked down, unsure of himself.

"Even so. You have the ability to grow, Jaune, I see something in you, and not just your power, I see a young man that may just make an outstanding huntsman" Ozpin spoke confidently, earning a look of surprise from the hooded teen.

"To tell the truth, I have recently been scanning around a bit for promising huntsman and huntresses in training, there is another possible student I managed to track down, a young girl with a concerning affinity for the scythe...

I digress, there are hundreds of potential students for this academy everywhere you rest your eyes, however do you know why I picked this girl in particular?" he questioned the boy, waiting calmly for a response as the boy contemplated his answer.  
>"You... like weaponized garden tools?" he returned honestly, to Ozpin's chagrin as he had hoped it was at least a joke.<p>

"People come to this academy for an assortment of reasons, the variety too numerous to list in one meeting, some come for revenge, some for redemption, reward, love, the list goes on and on. That is why it is a rare surprise when you come across someone who simply wants to help people, to fight monsters, not with an ulterior motive, but because it is what they deem right. That is why I chose that girl"

The boy shifted uncomfortably as the professor observed skeptically, after a few seconds, the boy looked up to meet the professor's expectant eyes.  
>"Well... the thing is... I'm not really here because of that" he confessed, earning a raised eyebrow from the professor before he quickly corrected himself.<br>"I-I mean, I _do _want to help people, I do! But..." he looked off with a faraway expression, intriguing the professor further.

"The reason I'm here is because of someone, that person pretty much made me the person I am today, with them, I learned things, _did_ things I had dreamt of doing since I was a little kid, I got to go on crazy adventures with a friend, I actually saved someone... for once I felt like I could actually be worth something.

Without that person, I'd probably still be holed up back at my village, and they are why I want to become a huntsman" he smiled as he fondly recalled the events that transpired within the few days he had known that very important person.

"Well, that is also a valid reason, I'm sure they would be proud of you for making it here" Ozpin smiled, causing the boy to scratch his head bashfully  
>"Yeah... hopefully she would" unaware of the information he had just let slip<p>

"She?" Ozpin repeated with a smirk, startling the young boy as his cool composure was lost in an instant  
>"W-What?" he squeaked, hoping he hadn't let that slip, though the expression on Ozpin's face told him he knew.<br>"You said 'she', Mr Arc" he spoke teasingly, causing the boy's panic to rise higher.  
>"Well I- I mean it's not really like I-"<br>"It's perfectly fine, you know" the professor interrupted "it's only natural that you would receive influence from the opposite sex. She must be quite special to inspire you for so long"

The boy's expression changed as he suddenly looked a little sullen, casting his gaze downwards, concerning the professor with the change of demeanor  
>"Yeah... only thing is, I don't really know if I'll ever see her again" he spoke with badly disguised grief as the professor attempted to renovate the mood.<br>"Well, some things are simply meant to be lost and never recovered" Ozpin stated, before lifting his head with a small smile  
>"However, bonds with others are not among them, your bond remains even in absence, it simply requires rekindling"<p>

The student seemed to gain a little hope from that, sitting back in his chair with a nervous grin as the professor cleared his throat.  
>"Now, I think it is time to move on to formalities, as per your circumstances, I have allowed you early residence in this academy, you may use this time to get acquainted with the school. Whilst not bothering the other students, of course.<p>

Your fellow first years will be arriving within a few days, when they do, I hope you will use make use of your head-start in order to help those that may find the first day to be daunting, no?" following a quick nod from the teen, the professor continued.  
>"In the meantime, you may also practice in the training grounds or perhaps begin early on the academic side by visiting the library. Your accommodation will have to wait until after initiation, though you may take this time to reserve a favorable spot in the main hall, if you wish"<p>

Jaune refused the urge to sigh at the last suggestion before excusing himself and excusing himself, heading towards the doors before the professor called out  
>"Jaune, that girl you mentioned, I know she was special, however you will meet many in this academy that can and will support you when you need it, learn to appreciate everyone you become acquainted with, you have friends all around you, remember?" Ozpin smiled, remembering the way Jaune saw strangers.<p>

Jaune nodded once more, not entirely sure of the meaning behind the words as he headed out into the grandiose halls of Beacon Academy, leaving behind a satisfied grin on the professor's face as he took another sip from his mug before turning to the blinking screen to his left, drawing his attention towards the collection of faces populating it.

With a few strokes of his fingers, a picture of a white haired boy with dark blue eyes was added to the roster, taking it's place next to a smiling young girl with rosy cheeks and ginger hair and a regal looking girl with hair a similar shade to Jaune's yet styled into an asymmetric ponytail and a small scar upon her eye.  
>Ozpin looked thoughtful for a second before saving the changes and returning to his beverage.<p>

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><p><em>"Nothing today either?" she asked, the silence that followed answering her question fully.<br>__"I'm sorry miss, the snowstorms are making it difficult for the teams to fly there, when it calms down, we should be able to send a team down there" he tried to re assure her, unnerved by the fact that she didn't turn to face him_

_"No... I suppose it's unavoidable... has the research team made any progress?"_  
><em>The doctor frowned, shaking his head "I'm afraid not, they can't find anyone matching that description I'm afraid"<em>

_There was a small silence between the two as the girl simply sat staring blankly out the window of her bedroom, not saying anything but obviously deep in thought and without a word, the doctor left her room with a bow._

_"Honestly, why are you being so troublesome?" the girl spoke quietly, resting her head on her arm as she continued to gaze off into the wintry lands surrounding the area, observing the perfectly shaped flakes of white float daintily downwards past her window._

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><p><em>The doctor sighed as he closed the doors to his office, setting his work for the day down on his desk before collapsing into his armchair.<em>  
><em>With half-lidded eyes, he took a glance at his computer screen, not surprised to see that there were no updates from the search team, he supposed that was only natural, the assignment the girl had given him was not an easy one by any means.<em>

_Completing it was a simple matter of asking the right people, the problem laid in the fact that word of his little mission couldn't reach the ears of the higher ups, and that alone raised the difficulty threefold._

_Only able to ask for things in a roundabout way, telling the search team they were looking for any young men with white hair, possibly calling themselves 'Jaune' as they may be a distant relative of the Schnee family was the only way to get them to the village, and he hadn't even planned on what he would do if they actually did manage to bring him back._

_Though it seemed like that was another matter entirely, the searches thus far had been unsuccessful to say the least, the harsh weather and ambiguity of the task was beginning to make the team question the validity of their orders._  
><em>If they happened to question someone connected to the higher ups about it then... the doctor shuddered at the thought, that would definitely not be good.<em>

_Deciding to give the reports another look, he came across a file that had previously interested him. It was a missing person poster detailing the missing son of none other than the Arc family, with the name Jaune no less! Though upon closer inspection, the boy described was a blond, rather normal,weedy young teen, not the vigilant ice caster the heiress had told him about._

_With a sigh, the doctor leaned back in his chair, the image of the lonesome heiress sitting at her window still pained him, he desperately wanted to help her in her search, but the way things were going, there was a possibility that she might not see him again, was it really okay to let her hang onto false hope?_  
><em>The doctor exhaled deeply once more, closing his laptop and retiring for the night.<em>  
><em>'It may be impossible after all'<br>_

* * *

><p>"Miss Schnee, the aircraft is prepared, are you ready?" Weiss was broken from her train of thought as she turned to face the attendant<br>"Yes, thank you, I will need just a minute" she responded politely, the attendant nodded before looking around her room curiously  
>"Is your father not here to see you off?" she asked innocently, not noticing the slight change of expression on the girl's face as her eyes tilted downwards.<p>

"Oh, he is very busy today, so he can't make it, I'm afraid" she spoke in the same tone, trying to ignore the look of pity she was receiving from the attendant before she skirted off to her other duties.

Clearing her mind, Weiss looked over to her bed, picking up her trusty rapier and securing her jacket before turning towards the mirror. Today was the day she would finally enter into her selected academy, there was no room for error, she was representing the Schnee family after all.  
>She reflexively turned her head so that her scar was less visible, such a blemish was unbecoming of an heiress like herself, confident that she was prepared, she stepped out of her room and made her way down to the front entrance, taking last glances at the decor she would likely not see again for quite a while.<p>

Part of her was glad to finally be leaving, the stiff and proper etiquette one had to follow at all times was not something she would miss, though she did find herself quite fond of the doilies and such, she had always longed for something more, outside of the duty of an heiress, her own journey.  
>Smiling at the thought, she came to the large double doors that led to freedom, noticing a familiar figure standing in front of them.<p>

"It's finally time, then?" the doctor asked with joy in his eyes, Weiss nodded with a small smile.  
>"Yes, I will see you when I get back, I presume?" she asked, earning an uncomfortable look from the man before he responded<br>"I hope so" stepping back, he looked her up and down "You really have grown, you look like a fully fledged huntress already" he grinned as the heiress nodded respectfully, pushing open the doors and seeing the airship in the courtyard waiting for her.

"Weiss!" he called out as the heiress turned round in surprise at the lack of formality  
>"I... I'm sorry we couldn't find him" the heiress' smile vanished temporarily as she turned away from the doctor.<p>

"It's not your fault" she spoke softly before setting off once again, leaving the doctor to watch her go, not willing to say anything more, knowing he'd only make it worse.

He looked up with a small smile as he saw the girl board the craft and as soon as she was out of sight, the craft lifted into the air, disappearing off into the distance.

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><p>Jaune grunted as he swung his blade downwards, slicing through the training dummy before channeling his power into his left fist, covering it in frost once more before propelling it towards the second dummy on the right, sending it flying backwards into the wall with a resounding crack.<br>With two down, he turned towards the third, positioned a few paces away holding a large wooden shield.

Holding up his free arm, he channeled his his power into a specific part of his palm before thrusting forwards, sending a spike projectile of ice hurling towards the dummy, breaking through the flimsy shield and impaling itself into its midsection.  
>Allowing himself a moment of triumph, Jaune held his fist in the air with a prideful expression.<p>

His eyes widened as he heard a small clap sounding from a bench next to the grounds, he turned to see a girl sitting, clapping cheerfully from the sidelines. She wasn't wearing a Beacon uniform like the rest of the students, instead she was clad in a set of light armor that seemed to resemble a spartan, though to Jaune her most defining features were her vibrant red hair and bright green eyes.

"Uh, hey, did you happen to, uh-" Jaune started with a small blush at having been caught as he approached her  
>"Your victory pose? I though it looked quite valiant" she spoke in an honest, friendly tone "I especially liked the way you fought, your sword didn't look like the dust using type so I was a little surprised when ice started to come out of nowhere"<p>

Jaune chuckled "Yeah, except it's not exactly the sword that does it" she looked confused at his answer as he took a seat beside her.  
>"What do you mean?" she asked curiously, intrigued by the source of the suddenly appearing element.<br>"I don't really mind telling you, but it's a little... unusual" this time it was the girl's turn to chuckle as she patted him on the shoulder,  
>"I like unusual!" she insisted<p>

Jaune smiled at the act before lifting his palm, getting the girl's attention.  
>"You know how dust has a lot of uses, right?" with a nod from the girl, he continued<br>"most use it as ammo or additions for their weapons, though in my case it's a bit different"  
>On cue, a small collection of ice began to build up on his palm, forming into the shape of a small crystal that gleamed in the sunlight.<p>

Jaune suppressed a small laugh at the look of amazement on the girl's face before she looked up to him excitedly  
>"That is truly incredible!" she exclaimed with enthusiasm as she picked up the crystal, holding it up and inspecting it closely.<br>"You really have a talent"

Jaune scratched his head bashfully "Small things like this are easy, but I still struggle with anything flashy"  
>His words only served to interest the girl further as she turned to him with zest<br>"Flashier? Like what?" she asked, taken aback by the mention of something even more amazing  
>"Oh, it's really not that great..." he tried to calm the girl when his eyes flashed with realization.<p>

"Actually... there _is _something you could help me with, if you want"  
>"Of course! What is it?" The girl beamed eagerly.<br>Jaune's eyes narrowed slightly, was it normal to be this nonchalant?

"I've been working on a new move to do with my power and I was wondering if you could help me practice it"  
>The girl got up with excitement "That sounds interesting, what kind of move?"<br>Happy to be able to finally show someone what he could do, Jaune got up and moved to the training grounds once more with the girl in tow  
>"Stand here for a minute" he said to the red-head before taking his position a few paces apart from her.<p>

"I've been working on different ways to get past an enemy's defense using my power and I think I've come up with something that may just work" he smiled with determination as he lowered himself, ready to charge at the girl.  
>"Could you take a defensive stance for me?"<p>

The girl nodded, unsure of what was next "Are you sure you shouldn't practice on a dummy first?"  
>"Trust me, I've had my share of fierce red heads" he laughed, though the girl was still unconvinced she got into her regular stance.<br>"Alright, here goes!"

As he set off, the huntress watched him intently, he started off by simply charging at her with no apparent tactic or hidden motive, his hand rested above his hilt though he didn't equip his sword yet as he continued to close their distance.  
>Raising her shield, he girl was prepared to let whatever attack he would unleash bounce harmlessly off it as they moved within reaching distance.<br>Her eyes widened however when the boy's stance completely changed, getting lower down and raising his arms.  
>Then he disappeared completely.<p>

Sensing danger behind her, she instinctively raised her spear to block the blade that had nearly connected with the back of her legs.  
>Without her noticing it, Jaune had somehow went from right in front of her to her back almost instantaneously.<br>How was that even possible?

Retracting his sword, Jaune stood up and laughed triumphantly  
>"It actually worked! I mean, sure it was blocked and rendered relatively useless but it still worked!"<br>The girl was, for the first time in a long while, genuinely at a loss for words.  
>"Thanks a lot, uh...?" Jaune stopped, realizing that he had no idea what to call her.<p>

"Uh, sorry, what was your name again?" he asked, not earning a response from the girl as she looked him up and down for any tool or trick he may have used to pull that kind of stunt off."Well erm..." the boy spoke, growing more nervous by the second.

Observing her also, he tried to come up with a suitable name for her, something incredibly original with both ingenuity and style to it. Taking note of the fierce color of her hair, he decided.  
>"I guess I'll call you 'Flame-Girl', if that's okay?" at that, the girl seemed to be broken from her stupor as she looked up to the boy.<br>"And you can call me Jaune, Jaune Arc" he held out his arm with a smile.

"It's nice to meet you, Jaune" she reciprocated, taking his hand with a gleeful expression, whilst not exactly impressed with his naming sense, she was happy anyway, never having been given a nickname before.

Holstering his weapon, Jaune turned to the girl.  
>"So, you wanna go pick a spot on the floor of the main hall with me?" he asked, confusing the girl, though she nodded nonetheless.<p>

"Wait, before we go" 'Flame-Girl' pulled him back, still yearning for an answer  
>"What did you do back there? I've never seen anything like it" it was rare for her to be taken by surprise by an opponent, let alone a fellow student.<br>The boy seemed to ponder his answer first, before looking back to her "I'll tell you..."  
>She leaned in with clear anticipation, preparing herself for the explanation<br>"...at some point. Not today though, I'm a little tired" he yawned.

The girl couldn't help but sigh in exasperation as the boy turned away, beginning to head off towards the main building  
>She took one last look towards the training grounds, peering closer when she saw something curious, it looked like two small trails of... <em>ice.<em>  
>They were just beside where she had stood and seemed to curve round to behind where she was.<br>Had he somehow used his power to get past her?

She considered the fact that she may have just got acquainted with a very promising huntsman, one that could reach above the levels other students couldn't attain by purely relying on their weapons. Managing to get past the defenses of a three time regional tournament winner with just one move, she couldn't deny the possibility that she might have just stumbled upon an upcoming prodigy of the next generation of huntsman and huntresses.

"Uh Flame-Girl? Which way is the hall again?" The 'Prodigy' called out helplessly as the girl's expression of wonder faltered slightly.

Or perhaps not...


	7. Initial Snowfall

**A little late birthday present... though now that I think about it, I should be the one receiving, not giving. Ah well, please enjoy the chapter and leave a review if you'd like!**

**EDIT: Oh my god, I have just recently learned of the tragic death of one of the greatest inspirations for many on this site, including me, Monty Oum.  
>I did not, or did not want to believe it when I first read it but it is true.<strong>

**I am shocked and saddened by this news, as are the millions that appreciate his work and him himself. My thoughts go to his family and his friends at Rooster Teeth, but also to the community who I am sure, like me, feel like they have just lost someone very close to their hearts.**

**I will continue this story in honor of the great man and I pray that I do his work justice**

**May he rest in peace**

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><p>Jaune sighed with content as he flipped another page of the comic, taken in by the vivid illustrations depicting a young teenage boy with a black hoodie facing off against hundreds of men in black to defend the princess being pursued, somewhere in the back of his mind he felt a sense of deja vu but dismissed it as he continued to enjoy the light novel, happy to enjoy some free time to himself.<p>

The 'Flame Girl' seemed pretty nice and they got along reasonably well but he still liked a little time alone, it was a habit he had probably picked up over the last few years, moving from place to place, never really making contact with anyone. That was, of course, up until that day...

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><p><em>There was a soft jingle as he swung the lodge door open, heading over to the counter, confident that he had grown quite talented at the art of attracting attention as he greeted the employee.<em>

_"A room for one, please" he spoke, just loud enough so that the woman could hear him. She inspected him curiously for a moment before quickly tapping her fingers on the keyboard beside her._

_"Hm..." she frowned at the monitor before looking up to the teen "I'm sorry, the only room available is a shared room for two, would that be okay?"_  
><em>Jaune looked contemplative for a second as he considered trying someplace else before reasoning that this was a fair ways away from the village, wondering if a little company once in a while would be good for him.<em>

_Taking his key and heading to the room marker '15', Jaune lightly rapped upon the wooden door, not wanting to intrude upon his roommate in case he was in the middle of something private, what activities one could get up to in such a remote lodge was something he did not let himself consider as he waited patiently._

_After a few seconds of silence, he felt confident that it was safe and entered his key, opening the door to reveal a small living room with a glowing fireplace, wide-screen television and a very inviting looking couch that he resisted the urge to collapse upon._

_With a lengthy sigh, he turned to see the entrance to what seemed to be one of the bedrooms next to a small kitchen area, dragging his luggage with him, he made his way inside, throwing the suitcase to the side of the darkened room before finally allowing himself to fall onto the bed, not looking or caring at what was on top of it._

_A small smile graced his features as he allowed the comfort to take over him, along with the heavenly smell of clean blankets, cologne and the little bowl of potpourri ... wait, cologne?! _

_"Well hello there, young man"_

_Jaune's eyes shot open as he slowly tilted his head upwards, now facing the formally dressed man that he now lay upon, his mind slowly registering what was occurring before he leaped into action._

_"AH! SORRY!" he exclaimed as he immediately removed himself from the odd position, now standing awkwardly to the side as he prayed that the man wasn't that displeased at the young boy who had barged into his room and tackled him onto the bed... he conceded that the odds were not in his favor._

_To his surprise and slight suspicion, the man simply chuckled before sitting up as Jaune got a better look at him. He was fairly older than him, dressed in a dark green suit and a pair of brown tinted spectacles framing his face which now sported a small smile as he seemed to inspect his intruder with a keen eye._

_"It's perfectly alright, you must have been travelling for a long time" he spoke calmly, taking a glance at the bulky load the boy had dropped at the side of the room "On a journey?" he inquired, fixing Jaune with a quizzical stare that the boy found hard to avoid._  
><em><br>Jaune pulled his hood a little further down as he coughed nervously_  
><em>"Yeah... something like that" he uttered, not quite convincing the man as he inspected him closer, looking thoughtful.<em>  
><em>He was sure he had seen this boy's face somewhere before.<em>

_On the trip here? No, he had arrived much earlier, had they shared transportation? From the looks of him, the chances of him being able to afford it were slim at best._  
><em>He had a sudden flash of memory as he recalled walking down the near deserted streets, he hadn't seen him walking around, surely. <em>  
><em><br>Then he remembered the poster he had seen stapled to several posts on his right._

_"So, uh, are you my roommate?" Jaune teen asked timidly, more than a little unnerved by the silent observation he was receiving._  
><em>"Hm?" The man was broken from his stupor as he looked back to the expectant teen<em>  
><em>"Professor Ozpin of Beacon Academy. And you?" he responded politely, not allowing himself a chuckle at the look he was getting from the gob-smacked boy.<em>

_Jaune mentally slapped himself, his first company in months and it's the headmaster of one of the most prestigious academies in Vale... and he had ended up straddling him within a minute of meeting him._

_Regaining his composure, he prepared to give his pre-prepared name "My name's-"_  
><em>"-Jaune Arc?"<em>  
><em>"Short, sweet, rolls of the tongue, ladies love it!"<em>

_A few moments passed before Jaune's eyes widened in realization as he turned to the professor who sat legs-crossed with a satisfied smile._  
><em>"Now now, Jaune, there is no need to be so alarmed, however, there are a few things I'd like to ask of you"<em>  
><em>The teen, still in shock, nodded wordlessly as the professor continued.<em>

_"Why did the room temperature drop to below freezing just now?"_

* * *

><p>Jaune smiled at the memory, remembering the abnormal first encounter that seemed like it was only yesterday, closing his comic, he set it down on the table before getting up, deciding to try to seek out 'Flame Girl' for some light training. Only making it half-way out the door before he was stopped by a sudden squeal of excitement.<p>

"I knew it! I just knew it!" came a high pitched voice before his arm was suddenly engulfed with a monster strength grip as he was yanked backwards before being presented to a boy around his age with light pink eyes and long black hair, styled into a ponytail and sporting a small highlight matching his irises.  
>"I told you he was real!" Jaune turned his head to see his red headed captor holding him like a trophy with a look of excitement in her aqua marine orbs.<p>

"Nora, personal space, remember?" the taller boy scolded, sending Jaune an apologetic look as the girl dropped him to his feet, suddenly circling him rapidly, checking his every detail, much to Jaune's confusion.

"Yup! There's no doubt about it, Ren, it's him!" she confirmed cheerfully before holding both arms out towards her prized discovery "It's Snow-Boy!"  
>Jaune's bewilderment only grew as he recalled the name. The hero of the comic book?<p>

Her friend shook his head with a sigh as he took the girl gently by the shoulders, halting the energetic girl from violating the poor teen further  
>"Nora, that's a fictional character. Just because he looks like him, doesn't make him real. People generally don't use dust for those kinds of things anymore, anyway"<br>Jaune let out a nervous laugh "H-heh, yeah"

Turning back to the victim of the onslaught of curiosity, the taller boy greeted Jaune politely  
>"Sorry about her, she doesn't really mean any harm. Lie Ren"<br>"Aand IIII'm Nora!" the girl announced with glee as Jaune smiled, happy to reciprocate.

"Jaune, Jaune Arc, no 'Snow Boy' here" he introduced, only half right.  
>Suddenly realizing something, he addressed the boy, expecting a more conclusive response than from the bubbly barbarian to his right.<br>"Where did you two come from, exactly?"

"We just arrived along with the some of the other huntsman and huntresses from several areas, you should get used to seeing new faces around the campus from now on" he informed Jaune, who smacked his forehead in annoyance.  
>"Argh! I was meant to help out with that! Sorry, Ren, Nora, gotta go!" without a reply, he dashed out of the library, leaving the two to resume their antics of Nora getting excited with everything she sees and Ren telling her not to touch any of it as they continued to tour the school.<p>

* * *

><p>Airships, airships, where were the airships? The Arc searched hurriedly down the halls, now thinking that he should have paid more attention during the tour.<br>If Ozpin found out he'd been lounging in the library instead of helping the first years it wouldn't be a pretty sight, as calm as he was, no man can take in _that _much caffeine and not be a little crazy.

Lost in his thoughts, he failed to notice where he was headed as just as quick as he had came upon the main entrance, he barreled right into a group of first years. With two large thuds and the clattering of metal, Jaune opened his eyes, only to squint as light was reflected into them, bouncing off of what seemed to be a large mace.

"Watch it, moron!" growled the much bigger teen as he got to his feet, sending a death-glare to the snickering boys behind him.  
>"Urgh.." Jaune groaned, holding his head as he attempted to sit up. "Did I get hit by a boarbatusk?" he mused, his head still spinning.<br>"What'd you say, pipsqueak?" came the dark tone of the boy standing above him, Jaune gulped as he lent down to pick up his malicious looking weapon of choice.

"Uh... well you see, what I _meant _to say was- oh look at the time, gotta go!" Jaune attempted to stumble off, not particularly wanting to take on the brute, only to be stopped as he was pulled back by the hood, causing it to fall down, revealing his ice cold features.

"Woah woah woah, what's with the ghost?" he jeered, taking note of the boy's skin tone, irking the teen as he tried to resist his urge to freeze the boy's arm right there and then. Smiling slightly as he imagined it, not going unnoticed by the brute.

"What're you smiling at?" Jaune raised his head, fixing his gaze upon the larger teen, suddenly considering his options.

Sure, before he probably wouldn't have stood a chance against someone like this, he'd be better off giving up or caving in, but now was different. Now he could stand up for himself!  
>With a fierce look in his eyes, he prepared to show the teen just who was the weakling around-<p>

_"HEY! HANDS OFF THE WEAKLING!"_ Came the ferocious roar that caused all eyes to turn towards the source, not quite believing it had originated from the young, buxom blonde girl standing before them with her arms crossed.

"Didn't you hear me?" she yelled, taking a threatening step forward as the larger teen chuckled nervously  
>"H-Hah, we're not scared of you, so back off!" he barked, causing the other boys to look at him in horror as the girl gained a dangerous glint in her eye.<br>Meanwhile Jaune stood where he was, still held by the hood with a confused expression.

"Oh?" The girl spoke darkly, unnerving all present before there was a deafening crack as her fist collided with the larger boy's chest-plate, sending him flying backwards, tumbling into the three boys behind him.

"Strrrrrrrrike!" The girl exclaimed, pumping her fist in the air victoriously, Jaune simply looked on with wide eyes at the awe inspiring and slightly frightening display of pure power. Looking round at him, the girl placed a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, you're safe now, citizen!" she spoke heroically as Jaune simply nodded slowly, unsure of what to make of the current events.  
>"Though if those guys ever bother you again, you know who to go to!" she stated proudly, giving him a reassuring pat before stepping back with a grin.<br>"Right... uh, who would that be again?" he addressed her for the first time, curious about the identity of the spontaneous savior from out of nowhere.

"Oh! I'm Yang, I'm gonna become a huntress here, what about you? Visiting someone?" she asked cheerfully, causing Jaune's eye to twitch ever so slightly before clearing his throat.

"Uh no, I'm going to study here too, see?" He said, pointing to the sword strapped to his waist as the girl nodded  
>"Ohh, well I guess we do come in all shapes and sizes!" she proclaimed as Jaune's eyes narrowed slightly,<br>not really wanting to know what she mean by that.

Remembering why he was there, Jaune gave a quick wave to the blond before setting off again, the airships now in sight.  
>He didn't look hopeful, it looked like most were off already and besides, what good would he be anyway? He barely managed to find his way <em>here<em>.

Seeing a crowd make their way over, he took his position in the middle of the path and attempted to look responsible.  
>"Hey! I'm Jaune, and I'm here to-" he was met with no response as the excited teenagers barged past him, elated that they had finally made it to the academy.<br>"Uh-umph, if uh any of you are lost-" Jaune attempted to offer fruitlessly as he was shoved out of the way by yet another blur as it sped off towards the gates.  
>"Whoa- hey! Watch it-" he spluttered as he was knocked to the sidet of the way of the excitable herd as they carried on, disregarding the hooded boy attempting to guide them.<p>

Picking himself up, he placed his hand on his hips and frowned, was there not at least one innocent first year, calling out from outside the crowd, absolutely helpless and in desperate need of a helping hand?

Allowing his eyes to wander, he managed to make out a small figure laying disheveled upon the floor near the fountain with its arms sprawled hopelessly across the stone floor. Jaune smiled inwardly, bingo!

Making his way over, he extended a hand towards the figure, now revealed to be a young girl clad in a black and red combat skirt and lengthy, similarly colored cape reaching down to her knees. Well, if anyone was in need of aid...

"Hey, need some responsible guidance?" he offered with a cheesy grin, causing the girl's eyelids to flutter open, revealing gleaming silver eyes that stared back up at him.  
>"What?" She asked, confused at the odd greeting as the boy fought down an embarrassed blush, deciding to try again.<br>"Uh, I'm Jaune" he spoke with a small smile, causing the smaller girl to let out a giggle as she took his hand, allowing herself to be pulled to her feet.  
>"Ruby"<p>

Jaune grinned at the girl, happy that he had somewhat followed Ozpin's orders when he noticed an oddly shaped contraption on the girl's back.  
>"Um, is that a fancy lunchbox?" she looked confused before realizing what he was talking about and reaching behind her, removing the light red device before presenting it proudly to the curious boy.<p>

"This is no lunchbox, it's my sweetheart!" she exclaimed, not enlightening the teen one bit as he continued to look bewildered as Ruby sighed  
>"Fine, look" with that, she pulled it back as the a mechanical whir sounded, Jaune looked on in amazement as the contraption unfolded to reveal a large hybrid between a sniper rifle and what appeared to be an over sized scythe.<p>

Thinking back to his talk with Ozpin, he looked thoughtfully at the young girl smiling ear to ear. So _this _was the other student he was talking about..

"Pretty cool" he mused, concealing his inner awe, looking mildly impressed as the girl stood proudly before returning it to it's much smaller, compact size,placing it back on her back and turning back to him with a curious glint in her eye.

"What about you? I mean that's not just for decoration right?" Jaune refused the urge to sigh as he was once more not recognized as a huntsman, though he supposed with his odd appearance it was anyone's guess what kind of guy he was.  
>"Well, yeah. It's pretty basic though, just a hand-me-down" he muttered, not bothering to take it out as the girl pouted<br>"Hey, you gotta appreciate the classics! Though it's a bit weird seeing one here..."

Jaune scoffed "Oh yeah? And laying down on the floor like a sloth on the first day of school is perfectly normal then?"  
>Ruby gave him a small scowl, though on her face it wasn't as threatening as she might have liked "That wasn't my fault!...Kinda" Jaune raised an eyebrow at her uncertain answer "It's not my fault the princess just had to be pushing her stupid carts around where I was walking..." she muttered, causing something to stir inside of Jaune as he picked up on what the little girl in red had just said.<p>

"Wait, princess?" he asked, a member of royalty enrolling at a school intended to train to become warriors would sound out of place to anyone, but that wasn't the reason why it piqued his interest.

"Weird right?! She was all high and mighty with her pretty ponytail and little tiara and she was really mean and I was just trying to apologize, then I _exploded _and then the girl in the bow showed up and then-"  
>"Woah, hey, hey" Jaune frantically waved his arms in front of the girl in an effort to silence the rambling that was growing more and more incomprehensible by the second.<p>

"Could you back it up a little, I'm lost" he pleaded, causing the girl to take a deep breath before looking back to him  
>"The girl with the bow came up to us and gave her a well deserved talking to! She was nice, but kinda quiet, the yellow eyes were cool though!"<br>"So..." Jaune tried to gather his thoughts "This girl, was she about yeigh big?" he held out his hand just below his shoulders, earning a nod from the girl in red.

"Was she kinda sly and mysterious?" he asked, earning yet another nod from Ruby as a picture started to form in his head.  
>"Was she wearing black and white?" With one more nod, he was certain.<p>

"Well, I think I may know just who-"  
>"Oh my god"<br>Hearing surprise in her usual monotone, Jaune turned to see the very girl that had just entered his mind, albeit a bit taller, drop her book upon realizing just who the hooded boy was.

"You..." she started quietly, taking a step back defensively with a wary look as Jaune looked on in shock, he had never expected to see her again, especially not here. Ruby simply looked confused at the sudden tension that had arisen  
>"Uhh do you two know each other or something?" she looked between the two, none the wiser to the fact that the last time the two had met was there little encounter in the woods that involved him taking out half of the trees in the area.<br>"You could say that" she spoke, lowering herself towards the ground, not taking her eyes off of the white haired teen.

Recovering from the temporary stun, the gears in Jaune's head continued to turn as he recalled what else Ruby had said.  
>A high and mighty princess-looking girl with a tiara and pretty ponytail...<br>As much as the logical side of him would like to dismiss it in order to avoid false hope, he just couldn't help but feel that there was a small chance that it may be exactly what he was thinking.

Just as he was pondering that, a sudden hush came across the trio as the sound of footsteps coming to an untimely halt caused the three of them to turn simultaneously to see a sight Jaune had to blink twice to prove to himself that he wasn't imagining.

"Uh... hey there"

Following that simple greeting was an agonizing silence that if Jaune had to wager, lasted approximately several hours as the girl in white, with her pristine hair tied into an asymmetric ponytail, clad in a light blue jacket with red lining and a similarly colored combat skirt that gave off a strong, yet refined vibe as a gleaming silver rapier hung elegantly from her waist. The thing the boy found himself focusing on, however, were the icy blue orbs that stared directly back at him, not breaking contact.

After a considerably agonizing period of time, the heiress's gaze turned downwards as her head tilted forward, causing the boy to feel a sudden sense of serious concern as he did not know what he would do in case the water works made an appearance.

"Hey, uh Weiss, it's really good to see you-"  
>"'<em>hey there'? <em>That's the first thing you say?! Two years of never finding you, never hearing your voice or even knowing you were alive, worrying that I might not ever see you again, then on the first day of the next part of my life, after I had finally given up, you re-appear and the first thing you say to me is 'hey there'?!"

The fury that was present in the heiress's glare when here eyes rose to meet his was something that would send an entire army of beowulfs running and give the average hooded teen nightmares for several weeks to come.

Beginning to sweat a little from the pressure, Jaune attempted to take a step away from the fierce gaze that seemed to threaten his very existence as he just about managed to choke out a reply

"A-ah erm, hey there...Snow Angel?"

* * *

><p>"All the airships are now on the return flight, the students should all be heading towards the main hall now, professor" Glynda informed, earning no more than a 'hm' from the flippant professor, to her it seemed that the wordy, charismatic side of him was exclusive to times when he wanted something from a student or what he called 'gentle encouragement'. Not that she was complaining, it had proven to be very effective lately.<p>

Without a word, Ozpin filled his ever present mug to the brim yet again and headed over to his window, looking out at the wide variety of students that were about to take their place within the halls of Beacon Academy. So much potential to put to better use, it brought a smile to his lips as he looked forward to the events of the school year

"Professor Ozpin, if I may, are you not concerned about the possible ramifications for letting someone with such an untested semblance into our midst, right now, support for the White Fang is growing, non organic combat units are on the rise and who knows what's occurring on the streets. Is it really best to take risks that may affect our reputation?"

She did not receive an answer immediately as the professor continued to look out upon the school grounds that belonged to him.  
>Without turning back, he responded<br>"Is the security of our social status really that vital that we are to turn away such promising talent?  
>Look out there, can't you see?"<br>Taking a closer look, Glynda saw them, groups of young men and women about to take the next step towards becoming who they were destined to become.  
>Satisfied she understood, Ozpin continued<br>_  
>"They <em>are organic warriors, they all fight for a cause, and they all are carried along by their own strength and will. They are not programmed, they make their own decisions and create their own paths, and we are here to help them achieve what they seek to achieve, nothing more and nothing less. We can not allow such trivial things such as our reputation to stand in their way"

With that, he turned and began to head for the doorway, prompting Glynda to pick up her tablet from the desk and turn to follow  
>"I just hope they are not too taken away by their wild ambitions that they forget about their education" she mused to herself<p>

Just as the words left her lips, there was a distant bang followed by a girly shriek as the pair turned back toward the window to see one of the so-called 'warriors' with snow white hair flapping through the wind as he was sent hurling from the front gates, flying off towards the library, flailing helplessly as he spiraled uncontrollably through the air, the echo of his less than manly cry followed by a resounding crash as he exited from view.

Ozpin smirked once more before heading out of the door, followed by an aggravated Glynda placing two fingers to her forehead in annoyance.  
>Thus marked the start of a new school year at Beacon Academy.<p> 


	8. The Cold Shoulder

Jaune inhaled deeply before exhaling slowly, steeling his confidence once more as he gingerly lifted his head, turning towards the pure white ponytail on the other side of the auditorium. This was his third attempt, the other two ended... less than successfully.. but he was certain this time he was to prevail, yes, he was going to do this, there was no doubt in his mind!

He raised his hand and gave a small wave, gaining the heiress's attention as she temporarily met his gaze.  
>He sent her a small, charming smile that was sure to win her over. Without fail.<p>

She simply narrowed her eyes, sending chills reverberating through his every limb as he was forced to avert his eyes before he was turned to ice... again.

As it turned out, one Weiss Schnee was not exactly overcome by the nostalgia and glee that comes with seeing an age old friend, instead he had received nothing but frosty glares and cold shoulders, not to mention the little sky launch he had suffered just 10 minutes earlier.

Jaune grimaced as he recalled the events following their short lived reunion

* * *

><p><em>'Ugh..' Jaune rubbed his scalp as bits and pieces of rubble fell from his dirtied locks onto the ground of the library, luckily he had managed to cushion his fall by forming a small layer of snow beneath him from the moisture in the air but the impact still made his head spin as he tried to remember what had lead him to these questionable circumstances.<em>

_He had been rushing to the school gate, he found a little girl in red, then he saw that faunus girl he had run into a while back. He hoped past events would not repeat themselves and that she had hopefully grown out of her 'ambush in the forest' ways. Then of course she came, the girl in white, the heiress herself, Weiss Schnee._

_Weiss Schnee... Jaune rolled onto his side with a sigh_  
><em>Fancy meeting her here, huh? What were the chances?<em>

_It didn't seem like she was over the moon at meeting him, he thought back to her words "Two years of never finding you... worrying that I might not ever see you again"_  
><em>Jaune's expression tuned slightly guilty, she had been looking for him, had she? He supposed that in those two years, he could have made more of an effort to locate his temporary partner in arms, it was not like he didn't want to see her again, his mind was just... otherwise occupied.<em>

_Maybe the universe was telling him something, just maybe something out there wanted us to stick around each other, he chuckled at the thought but couldn't quite dismiss it. Well, whether destiny, an act of God or simple coincidence, he was not just going to let this opportunity pass him up, he'd make amends and then re unite with his old companion, for better or worse!_

_He clenched his fist with determination, brimming with fresh resolve, his eyes sparkling brightly!  
>"Ah-hem" broken from his stupor, he turned to see a rather displeased looking librarian scowling down at him and the tattered books that lay scattered around him.<em>  
><em>"Would you mind not lounging on our literature?" she fixed him with a glare as he blushed in embarrassment, picking himself up and offering a bashful apology.<br>Next time he'd use the door, still that was pretty close, maybe the school should encourage landing strategies..._

* * *

><p><em>For better or worse...<em> That's easy to say, but...  
>The heiress disappeared once more did not turn his way as she was lost in the crowd standing impatiently before the stage of the auditorium, paying no mind to the hooded teen waving madly behind her.<br>This was going to be harder than he thought, he mused placing his fingers to his chin as he contemplated just how to break the barrier between him and the Ice Queen.

"Jaune, I'm glad I found you!" Turning to the cheerful call, he spotted the familiar red head making her way over to him with a slight spring in her step as his expression softened.

"Hey there, Flame-Girl" he greeted, grateful for the company of a female that wouldn't end up with him being sky-rocketed or mentally fatigued as the trend seemed to follow as she took a place next to him.

"I haven't seen you for a while, what have you been up to?" she asked innocently as Jaune rubbed the back of his head nervously, unsure of how he would relay the tale of his meeting with the spunky and serious duo, the rescue from the buxom blonde, the damsel in red and his untimely reunion with the ex-(hopefully) White Fang member and Schnee heiress that were all compressed into the small span of 10 minutes.

"Nothing much" he answered simply, opting out of the hour long Q and A that would follow filling in the oblivious red head beside him.  
>Luckily, she seemed satisfied with that answer as she nodded gleefully before remaining silent as Jaune let out the breath he'd been holding, grateful that Flame-Girl was far too happy go lucky to be suspicious of him.<p>

As the rest of the hall filled up, Jaune managed to pick out a little bob of red positioned next to the considerably larger blonde he had met earlier, did the two know each other?  
>Then, as fate would deem it, there she was again. Her appearance causing the little red to jump into the bigger girl's arms, Weiss was once again brandishing her world renowned ice cold glare.<br>Deciding to investigate, he politely excused himself from the Flame Girl and attempted to sift through the crowd, slowly making his way over to the trio, noticing the conversation somehow evolving into Weiss shoving a brochure into the young red's face and delivering pre-rehearsed instructions at Mach 20 speed.

Finally finding himself relatively near the trio, he opted to wait a while and listen intently, hanging onto the slim chance that they would somehow end up on the topic of Weiss's current mental state and her possible re-consideration of her attitude towards her good old pal Jaune... the odds were slim, he had to admit.

"Hello Weiss, I'm Ruby, wanna hang out? We could go shopping for school supplies!" Ruby suggested desperately as Jaune put a hand to his heart, feeling a sense of comradeship in their shared effort to befriend the Ice Queen. _'Fight on, little red!'_

"Oh yeah, and we could paint our nails and try on clothes and talk about cute boys like-" She turned in his direction to be faced with Jaune standing there in a model-like pose, presenting what appeared to be a bouquet made completely out of ice as he flashed a boyish grin.  
>"Tall, frosty and charming?"<p>

Staring blankly for a few seconds, she showed no reaction before turning her back to him "Forget the last part"  
>"Wow, really!" Ruby asked, not taking notice as the 'frosty gentleman' fell to his knees in defeat.<br>Weiss fixed her with a scrutinizing glare, just why was everybody so desperate for her friendship?! "...No"

* * *

><p>Following a rather unnerving speech from their ever mysterious headmaster, the large ensemble of budding huntsman and huntresses dispersed into their respective corners of the hall, Jaune deciding to find the spot he had reserved along with the Flame Girl. All the while feeling slightly uncomfortable as tan and muscly teens flexed every inch of themselves in full view of the huntresses, earning multiple second looks.<p>

Jaune instead opted to keep his normal attire on for as long as possible as if he went bare chest, the bright pigment of his skin was bound to attract unwanted attention, and quite possibly blind someone if the light caught him right.

Just as he was heading towards the vibrant red ponytail he had spotted from across the room, he noticed a familiar face sitting against the wall adjacent to him, the girl in the big black bow sat, her eyes never straying from the novel placed on her lap, illuminated by the flickering candle beside her.  
>Feeling audacious, he took a seat next to her, sitting cross-legged with a cheesy grin, earning a look of suspicion from the girl as she eyed him momentarily before flicking another page.<p>

"So... I'm Jaune" he offered his arm, earning a confused look from the silent huntress which made him feel slightly self conscious  
>"U-Um, it's just I don't think we ever actually introduced each other before" <em>...back when you were supposed to assassinate me in a dark forest <em>he decided not to add.  
>"Blake" she muttered, not meeting his gaze as Jaune struggled to keep up what could only barely pass as a conversation<p>

"So, uh Blake we might have not gotten off to the _best _start but I think it would be nice if you and I-"  
>"Why?" she interrupted, stopping the boy mid-sentence as she finally met his eyes, though they were narrowed and obviously very skeptical of the hooded teen that were clearly reflected in them.<p>

"Erm, why what?" he asked innocently, not quite adjusting to the seriousness of her tone.  
>"Why haven't you reported me?" she spoke in a low tone, obviously to avoid any chance of an eavesdrop.<p>

Jaune thought about that, he was fully aware that the girl sat casually in front of him was or is a member of a notorious terrorist group of faunus that utilize violence and fear in order to achieve their goals, and to boot he had been one of her targets, only escaping because of the after effects of a whimsical idea involving a briefcase full of light blue dust.

Any logical person would have her reported to the authorities at once in case she decided to finish what she had started, yet Jaune felt no inclination to do anything of the sort, after a few seconds pondering why, he came across a reason that he felt truly explained it, among many other recent events.

"Well, I'm kind of dumb" he stated plainly, earning a look of surprise from the bookish girl who wondered whether or not he was joking, finding no obvious humor in it.  
>"Well I must be, mustn't I? A girl tries to impale me with a katana blade and I try to become her friend because she seems like she's really a nice person, not exactly grade A logic there, is it?" he chuckled to himself, conscious of the very odd look he was receiving from the presumed faunus beside him.<p>

"You know, you're a little strange" she spoke honestly, but with a tinge of amusement in her tone  
>"But I'll trust you, for now" Jaune cracked a little smile. Definitely Ex member...<p>

Saying a quick goodnight to his new friend, Jaune set off once again, catching sight of the buxom blonde once again dragging her redhead companion over towards Blake as he wished her good luck with the dynamic duo before turning and locating the Flame Girl mid conversation with the pair he had met with in the library.  
>The spartan was too enthused to learn about the ginger girl's unlikely friendship with a lonely nevermore that the older boy insisted was a lie to notice Jaune approaching.<p>

Opting not to interrupt them, Jaune rummaged through his belongings, hoping to find suitable articles of clothing to wear for the night, his hands freezing when he came upon his nightwear.

Jaune sat slack jawed as he lifted the light blue one piece he had discovered among his things, regretting not paying more attention to what he took when he packed this bag before leaving. Well... it would definitely keep him covered up, what other choice did he have?

* * *

><p>Weiss huffed as she sat down by her neatly laid out bedding, thankfully separated far away from the head splitting antics of the collection of girls she couldn't help but constantly encounter during her time at Beacon. Ever since coming to this place, it was as if she couldn't go one minute without something abnormal coming out of nowhere and messing up her day!<br>She sighed, laying herself down and closing her eyes, looking peaceful, however it was much the opposite.

She hadn't quite recovered from the shock she had suffered at the hands of the arctic acquaintance she had come face to face with a few hours prior, looking back, maybe she should have asked for answers first before sending him half-way across the school. But honestly, he got off lucky, popping up just as soon as she had given up looking for him, the nerve!

...However, she found that a part of her didn't care about that, a part wanted to go and talk to her first ever friend, find out what happened to him and then... well she supposed they wouldn't really have a choice about spending time together seeing as they were just enrolled at the same academy for the remainder of their teen-hood.  
>When she began to search for other reasons why not to go and try to patch things up, she came to one constantly recurring conclusion, she was <em>guilty<em>.

It was odd, it wasn't an emotion she felt often, but surely enough, when she saw his deathly pale complexion and black hood attempting to conceal his snow colored hair, there was a small pang in her heart. It was because of her that he was changed forever, he was stuck like that for the rest of his life all because he did everything he could to save her. That was part of the reason she aimed to get stronger, so that no one else would get harmed trying to protect her.

Images of the poor boy shivering relentlessly beneath the covers flashed in her mind, after all he had been through, not to mention the years afterwards, she had no idea what happened to him in the time between them meeting and now, he must have been through many an ordeal to make his way here. All because of _her, _maybe it would be best if she kept herself away from him...  
>What if he was damaged... emotionally? What if the ice had spread to his heart and made him cold?<p>

The paranoid thoughts swirled around in her head, causing her eyes to snap open in panic- then she simply stared blankly...  
>as a figure dressed in a light blue one piece strode past her, humming cheerfully as he did so, causing many interested huntresses to look away in disgust as he made his way past the flexing muscular boys, obscuring their view with an innocent grin.<p>

Weiss resisted the urge to smack her forehead as she lay herself down once more, wondering why she had wasted her time worrying about him.

* * *

><p>It was the day of initiation, the day when they would be sorted into the teams, forging bonds that would mean the very difference between life and death throughout the perilous and grueling day to day life of huntsman and huntresses, concern and worry were evident on the expressions of most the students he passed by, though the little red was more annoyed at the concept of making new friends, the pair from the library were adamantly trying to figure out a way to beat the system and end up on the same team and the heiress was in the middle of a desperate ploy to recruit the red headed prodigy into her team, all the while, the sole thing occupying Jaune's mind was-<p>

_'Where in the HELL is locker 636' _he eyed up the lockers with eyes resembling that of a keen owl as he passed row after row of murder weapon full lockers, failing to locate his own _'Come to think of it, are there even over 600 students at this school?'_

With a sigh, Jaune conceded defeat, looking at his options, the squabbling sisters and the sloth callers, his judgement told him to instead go to the pair standing by the benches, waving as he approached.

"What's going on, you two?" he greeted chirpily as he was replied with a gleeful expression and... something else entirely from the girl next to her.  
>"Jaune! Are you feeling ready for today?" the Flame Girl asked merrily as the heiress stood silent, eyeing the new arrival carefully.<p>

"Just about, uh, how about you, Weiss?" he asked timidly, fearing for his organs, internal and otherwise. Luckily, she did not seem as agitated as the other day  
>"We were just discussing teams" she answered without any particular emotion in her voice as the redhead nodded in agreement.<br>"What are you thinking of doing, Jaune?"

The teen looked contemplative as he thought about it for the first time, out of everyone he had met so far... Yang seemed pretty powerful... though the though of being on the other end of that temper of hers sent shivers down his spine. Ruby seemed ok, though the way she swung her weapon about was sure to take out an eye or two eventually, Blake was... hard to figure, it was difficult to know how she thinks but from what he saw in the forest, she was pretty good.

Ren and Nora probably came as a set, no doubt, the two had good teamwork and seemed friendly enough, if not slightly psychopathic maybe they would be a good way to go, looking to his left he observed the patiently waiting redhead, she would definitely be a good asset, a good friend and even greater on the battlefield... then his gaze rested upon the heiress and he stopped as the thought lingered for a while.

_Teaming up with Weiss... huh?_

Slightly concerned about the boy's everlasting vacant stare, the redhead waved her hand in front of his eyes, breaking him from his daze.  
>"Oh, sorry uh... I guess we'll have to wait and see!" he finished with a nervous chuckle as Weiss let out an impolite cough<br>"Well Pyrrha and I have just decided to team up, perhaps you should look elsewhere" she spoke coldly, causing Jaune's casual smile to droop slightly, something that did not go unnoticed by either girl as Weiss looked slightly regretful before turning her head as Pyrrha lay a comforting hand on his shoulder.

"Actually I hear the teams are comprised of four students each!" she informed excitedly as Jaune's hopes were lifted slightly.  
>"So... you think I could join up with-?" Jaune began hopefully before Weiss spoke up<br>"Hold it, Jaune, consider who you are talking to before asking like that!" Jaune looked confused as he looked over to the redhead smiling happily as ever.

"That's Flame-Girl" he answered honestly, picking up on the slight glare he received from the heiress as she heard his address, _so he gave her a nickname, then?  
><em>"_This _is Pyrrha, she graduated top of her class at Sanctum" she stated matter-of-factly, earning a dumb stare from the boy opposite her  
>"Uh, haven't heard of that one..." he scratched the back of his head shyly<br>"Hmph, she's won the Mistral Regional Tournament four years in a row, a new record!"  
>"The what?" Weiss lost her patience<p>

"She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes box!" she exclaimed, wildly swinging her arms as it clicked in Jaune's mind.  
>"That was <em>you?! <em>Damn, I lived off that for like, two years! I can't believe it!"

Weiss's eyes narrowed at that '_lived off it for two years?'  
><em>"That's interesting... but that must have been very bad for your health..." Pyrrha looked concerned as Jaune let out a little laugh, assuring her his livers were fully operational... he hoped.

Feeling an unexplained pang of guilt, Weiss spoke up again  
>"Well, after hearing that, do you still think you can ask to be on her team?"<br>Jaune's expression faltered once more, causing Weiss to turn her head abruptly to avoid seeing it when Pyrrha exclaimed

"Oh I've actually seen Jaune in combat and experienced it myself, he's honestly very impressive!" she spoke proudly as Weiss's eyes widened slightly, just how well did these two know each other anyway?! He didn't even know her name a minute ago!

"And the things he can do with that ice, it's spectacular" she added cheerily whereas Weiss's face was completely devoid of warmth  
>"<em>You told her?!" <em>she pointed an accusing finger with such fury that Jaune couldn't quite believe could be exerted by one little furious appendage.  
>"Oh yes, and the way he suddenly got behind me was a feat to behold!" the flame headed girl said carelessly, causing the heiress's face to turn a bright shade of pink as the worst possible meaning behind that entered her mind.<p>

Jaune, noticing the possibly fatal misunderstanding, quickly raised his hands in surrender, alas it was too late  
>"Jaune you perverted little-!" she raised her rapier with a look of wrath as Jaune took a big gulp<br>"W-W-Wait that's not what she-"

Before any other pleas of mercy could escape the boy's mouth, he found himself being propelled through the air, hurling towards the end of the room and colliding roughly with the final row of lockers, his hood impaled to the one directly above him by a shining silver rapier as a notification rang out from the speakers  
><em><br>'Will all first year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation,  
>again all first year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately' <em>came the familiar voice of Glynda Goodwitch, alerting the nearby newcomers as all  
>began to make their way out of the locker oom<p>

His head was spinning too much to respond as the heiress arrived, removing her weapon with a huff before storming out as the redhead followed after  
>"I'll see you at the cliff, then!" she smiled nonchalantly once more before exiting also.<br>"Yeah..." he responded meekly as he rested his head against the hard metal, catching sight of the number imprinted upon it  
><em>'636'<br>_Jaune blinked twice... _Well I'll be damned...  
><em>

* * *

><p><em>"<em>For years, you have trained to become warriors. Today your abilities will be evaluated in the endless forest" Jaune took a nervous glance out at the vast wood spreading far out as the eye could see, it wasn't as if he wasn't familiar with the concept of stumbling through a dark forest without any sense of direction but still...

Jaune refocused his attention as Glynda stepped forward, addressing the crowd formally "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams, well, allow us to put an end to your confusion, each of you will be given teammates... today"

_"What, hrmm" _came Ruby's small cry as Ozpin spoke up once again  
>"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon, so it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you work well"<br>At that Jaune, looked over, locating the attentive heiress looking thoughtful as she also considered the headmaster's words

_"You idiot"_

_Jaune's eyes widened at the unexpected response. He turned to see her raising an eyebrow at him._

_"Not cut out for it? Never better than mediocre?_

_Minutes after we met, you managed to elude a group of trained assassins, carrying me half the way, then you tackled one of them into a frozen lake, which was still a stupid thing to do but I digress, you managed to hold your own against him and using you new power, managed to drive him and those other rapscallions back into the dirt holes they crawled out from._

_And if that isn't enough, even when you were frozen half to death, you still somehow managed to come to my aid when I needed it most. I'll admit I was skeptical at first, but right now... I feel like I can really trust you to have my back"  
><em>  
>Jaune smiled, remembering every word, remembering the way she supported him, like a friend, like a partner.<p>

This nostalgic feeling was not to last however as Ozpin took another sip of his coffee  
>"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with upon landing will be your partner for the next four years"<p>

_Hold on,_

_DOESN'T THAT DEFEAT THE PURPOSE OF EVERYTHING YOU JUST SAID?!_

"Once you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest, you will meet opposition along the way, do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path  
>or you <em>will <em>die" he delivered heartlessly.

Jaune looked around to check if he'd heard that right, this guy was meant to educate and encourage the next generation, right?  
>Surely enough, he was the only one who found it as anything outside the ordinary as the rest looked on, unfazed, some worryingly so.<p>

"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of the initiation but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple  
>at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must chose one and return to the top of the cliff, you will guard that item, as well as you're standing, and we<br>will grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

_About 3 million... _but what Jaune was most concerned about was how exactly they were going to get down there, he didn't see any ladders or helpful ski lifts...  
>"Yeah, uh sir?"<br>"Good! Now, take your positions" Jaune frowned, not taking notice of the students beside him all entering specific  
>poses, poised for what was to come next.<p>

"Uh, sir, I've got a question..." A loud pang alerted him as he turned to see the spot where the heiress stood... _or was standing_, then looking upwards to see her flying through the air, quickly followed by yet another student.

Jaune went a shade paler... if that was possible _'Don't tell me...'_

"Uh, sir, you gave them parachutes, right?"  
>The professor merely smirked, raising his mug to his lips, Jaune guessed it was to hide the evil laugh that he was certain followed each one<br>of their insane headmaster's sentences.

Before he knew it, Ruby was already soaring through the sky, meaning of course that the next victim would be...  
>Jaune sighed deeply,<br>_  
>Well, I guess I'm going for the trifecta...<em>


	9. Footprints in The Snow

As you can imagine, going from suitably stationary to hurling through the heavens at Mach 20 speed on your first day at school is a reasonably confusing and disorienting experience, however this momentary stupor was quickly overcome when the confusion was replaced by sudden panic as he realized his current situation.

Managing to turn his head, he caught sight of his fellow human projectiles as they equipped a wide assortment of weapons of all shapes and sizes, utilizing their traits in order to slow their fall and elegantly escape into the concealing foliage of the Emerald Forrest.  
>Quite convenient for some, however, unlike some, his weapon didn't come with an inbuilt utility belt and thus here he was, flailing hopelessly through the air towards a certain demise, well he supposed if he kept making a habit out of being flung through the atmosphere, this was bound to occur.<p>

As the looming shrubbery came closer, he realized he had to think, not exactly his strongest point but he thought he was good at thinking up things as he went, either that or he was just lucky... or maybe it was that he died the first time around and this was all the illusion of a dying boy that never got to achieve his dreams, residing in dreams to escape his harsh reality... maybe scratch that last one.

In his inward ramble, the ground and tower-like trees had grown dangerously near as his head began to spur into action, he had to act fast.  
>Looking around, he tried to recall previous situations like this for a solution, to which end he found... nothing.<br>Okay, improvisation it is.

Shutting his eyes, he focused his inner power, feeling a chilling sensation overcome him as course throughout him as his eyes re-opened, now carrying an icy tinge to his look as he focused on the ground rapidly approaching him as he condensed a light layer of moisture to create a slight covering of snow over his legs, it wouldn't negate the entirety of the impact, but it was better than nothing.

However, he was still likely to end up with a few broken bones and a possible concussion if he came to such a sudden stop, taking a glance around his surroundings, he managed to pick out a small stream a few yards away from his decided landing spot as he held out his arm towards it, channeling his power into it until the stream started to move erratically before suddenly lifting from its position and heading towards Jaune's path, landing on the grass and freezing, creating a mini ice stream stretching from where he would make contact.

Satisfied, he prepared himself to remove most of his momentum with the drop, lowering his mid air stance and narrowing his eyes before he hit.  
>There was a resounding crack as he impacted the ice path, wincing slightly from the pain but realizing it could have been much worse before regaining his balance as he steadily slid down the ice path, smirking as his plan had worked.<p>

* * *

><p>With a graceful few flicks of her wrist, she managed to cast the appropriate glyphs and land safely in a small clearing, taking a moment to dust herself off before taking in her surroundings.<br>Looking around, there was no clear path or indication of where she was meant to go, which would be troublesome but she supposed it was necessary to evaluate the skills of newcomers.

That wasn't her only concern, the proclamation that your partner would be the first one you make eye contact with was an annoyance, however in the future, she would be expected to be prepared to fight alongside anyone so she might as well get used to it now.  
>Of course, that didn't mean she couldn't be selective.<p>

The face of a certain someone entered her mind once again but she shook it off, she had made her decision, she couldn't go back on it now, no matter how much it tugged at her to reconsider. She conceded that it would be in the best of interests for all if she were to go with Pyrrha.  
>Though, as she tried to find her sense of direction in the endless city of green before her, she had a long search ahead of her.<p>

She sighed, it would be so much easier if they were to come to her instead...

Just as the thought entered her head, a sudden scream sounded from behind her. It sounded like some girl was in trouble!  
>Turning to see the source, her eyes widened when she saw the black shape propelling towards her as she attempted to reach for her rapier.<br>Her last thought was one of whether the black blur seemed familiar before she was suddenly engulfed by cold as her vision turned to black.

* * *

><p>Jaune raised his fist in triumph, happy that for once, he had survived a fall without so much as a scratch.<br>What he did not stop to consider, however, was the end of the hill he had allocated to be his landing zone, too gleeful to realize it until it was too late before he hit the top of the hill and was sent flying... again.

Jaune let out a less than manly yell as he tried to think of another genius plan, his mind to panicked to work properly as he sped towards the hard earth ground. There was no time to think, if it came to this, then!

Focusing once more, he forced out a strong surge of power, allowing it to escape him as an icy blue light filled the air before landing on the bank, summoning a large pile of snow, silencing a yelp that came from an unsuspecting participant as Jaune collided with it, sending snow flying in every direction as he let out a sigh, just happy that no one had been around to witness that fiasco.

Opening one eye, he lifted his head slightly, restricted by the snow he was engulfed in, and managed to locate his arm, he attempted to burrow out the thick snow, becoming confused when it seemed to refuse to respond, staying exactly where it was.

Upon closer inspection, the arm seemed rather odd. It was thinner and was not as pale as his was, it looked kind of... feminine.  
>Assuming he had just lost feeling in it, Jaune took his free left arm and reached over, pinching the hand, <em>hard.<br>_"Owch!"

From the outside, two pairs of eyes blinked open through the snow, one a deep blue, and the other an icy shade.  
>With yet another shriek from the boy, he stood himself up, the snow falling behind him as the heiress did the same.<br>"What was _that _for?!" she screamed, looking down at her slightly red hand.

"Sorry!" Jaune blurted "I thought that was my arm!"  
>"What? How could you-?" she began, starting to lift her head before suddenly freezing, realizing what was about to happen.<br>"Don't look!" she jumped out of the snow and turned her back on the stupefied teen.

"Uh... Weiss, what are you?" the heiress turned back to him with a scowl, well, he assumed it was a scowl, her eyelids were sealed shut but the eyebrows were enough to convey her emotions clearly.

"I was meant to partner with Pyrrha, remember?" Jaune looked down slightly, thinking he had gotten used to it by now, but still feeling a slight sting from the girl's words. "Just... find someone else, okay?" she spoke before turning to leave abruptly, leaving behind a boy she was sure would finally go his own separate way, not to follow her needlessly any longer.

* * *

><p>...At least that's what she thought.<p>

All throughout her trek through the never ending forest, she could feel the gaze of someone nearby, the occasional snapping of twigs and rustling of leaves were giveaways also to the fact that she had not quite shaken her pursuer.  
>Deciding trying to coerce him out of it was pointless, and not wanting to risk eye contact, she ignored him, after a while, surely he would give up, why wouldn't he?<p>

However, despite the sense in it, or lack thereof, Jaune still followed, not stalked, as he would remind himself, as he didn't have any ulterior motives... really, he didn't!

After a good half an hour, Weiss realized her unwanted companion was not her biggest problem as any attempt to fathom just where she was had ended fruitlessly, frustrating the heiress to no end, yet she knew better then to ask for help. The idea of asking was ludicrous, nigh inconceivable!  
>"Hey, uh, you know where you're going, right?"<p>

As regularly practiced for an attacker from behind, Weiss had her rapier against the assassin's throat within a second of realizing he was there, though of course, she was careful to focus on the boy's feet.  
>"Didn't I tell you to leave?" Jaune chuckled nervously, edging awkwardly away from the tip of her blade<br>"Well, uh actually you told me to find someone else" he spoke honestly.  
>Weiss's eyes narrowed "And...?"<p>

"I did! Then I came back a couple minutes later" Weiss couldn't see the smile, but the cheery tone was enough to confuse her  
>"Who?" she asked, not quite understanding what the boy was implying<p>

"Pyrrha, I found her near the clearing" he spoke casually, causing the heiress to audibly gasp as she had to stop herself looking up to him as a sudden feeling of sadness came over her, not because her main target for a partner had been taken, but, no matter how much she would have liked to deny it, she felt this way because it was official, Jaune wasn't her partner any more, he had moved on, that was good, that's what she had been hoping for, it's only natural after how she'd been treating him, it was all calculated, it was for the best, then why?  
>Why did it feel so horrible?<p>

Turning her back, she stepped away from him  
>"W-Well, go on then! You don't want to keep her waiting, after all, you should feel privileged to have a partner like-"<br>"She's not my partner, I walked off" he stated simply as Weiss once again had to resist the urge to look back at him and look at his face and attempt to read his expression and find out why in the world he would so something so blatantly foolish.

From her position, she spoke quietly "Why? Why would you do something like that?"  
>Whatever she had expected, it wasn't what came next.<p>

"Because you're my partner"

It was not the matter-of-fact tone that shocked her, nor the nerve to proclaim who she was and what her role would be, it was instead the implication that he had found a world renowned huntress, beautiful and gallant with a personality that far outshone her own that would gladly accept Jaune without question,  
>he could have partnered up with the number one prodigy of this generation and soared higher than any other team at the academy... and he had walked away from it, for <em>her.<br>_  
>Because she was his partner.<p>

The thoughts and emotions swirling around like a whirlwind in her head filled her with mixed feelings, some of great joy and happiness, others of uncertainty and nervousness, Jaune was not much better off.

He hadn't really planned to say that, it just came out without him thinking, if she had been turned around, he had half a mind that he'd have been sent on yet another voyage through the skies, coming out with something like that after she made it clear she wanted nothing to do with him... may possibly have been a mistake.

Though maybe, just maybe, she wouldn't mind? Could it be possible that she would be willing to accept him with a joyful expression and tears of happiness accompanied by a choir and guitar riff? Well, no, definitely not that, but it was possible, yes it was surely possible that she might have had a sudden change of heart and is now going to completely open up to him!

"You idiot" she spoke coldly, shattering Jaune's delusions immediately as he flinched slightly  
>"You can't even tell, all this time, I have been deliberately horrible to you, yet you still just keep on spouting nonsense like that, why don't you hate me?! All this time, I've treated you like dirt, ignored you completely and even refused to be associated with you and yet you still..."<p>

"Weiss, I..." he attempted to speak up, but was unable to find any words.

"Even before now... I mean just _look at yourself! _You've changed, you aren't the same Jaune Arc that was raised by his family in a quiet out of the way village.  
>You nearly drowned, and the only reason you didn't is because you changed yourself entirely, you suffered for days because of the cold, you were forced to brave it to rescue me, and then you were nearly killed in the woods! All because of me!<p>

And don't think I don't know about what happened in between!" Jaune's widened eyes were filled with confusion as she said that, how could she possibly-?  
>"You left your family, didn't you?" her accusation was met with silence, thus she continued.<br>"Any caring family would never let you live off of Pumpkin Pete's for over a year, and I overheard that Ruby girl talking about how she was discovered randomly on the street just like another boy Ozpin had mentioned. It's not hard to put two and two together, you know"

Jaune looked down in solemn remembrance as he recalled the lonesome time he had spent travelling from lodge to lodge, he imagined his little trip with Weiss had gotten him hooked on the places, it had been a very hard part of his life, but that still didn't mean that Weiss-

"I- I'm stronger now, you don't need to put yourself in danger for me, I can protect myself, so you don't have to suffer anymore, okay?  
>Go back to Pyrhha" With that, she sped off, not surprised when she heard no response or calling from the boy behind her, this time he was sure to leave her alone forever, she had finally gone and done it.<p>

Without caution as to where she was headed, she fought to keep the liquid building up in her eyes from cascading down her cheeks as she tried to put as much distance between her and Jaune as possible. In both senses.

* * *

><p>It was a considerable amount of time later when Weiss found her way to something that looked like it could legitimately hold something of worth, a cave entrance on the side of a cliff with ambiguous red markings upon the rocky walls. Suspicious as it may seem, it was the only feasible lead she had come across so she had no choice but to venture inside.<p>

Whilst light at first, the cave quickly became steeped in darkness, causing Weiss to activate her rapier, allowing the compartments to grow with a light that was small but enough to see where her feet were stepping.  
>As the darkness grew, as did her doubt, the cave was relatively empty and easy to pass through, hardly a test for upcoming huntsman and huntresses, nonetheless she carried on, not wanting to leave only to later find out that the relics actually did lie within.<p>

Slowly trekking her way forward, she became slightly concerned as she felt something warm, though it was foreboding and made her stop mid-step.  
>She shook her head, she was a huntress now, she had to face anything that stood in her way, even if it meant doing it alone.<p>

With a clear mind, she was able to take the next step, only that one however as a bright orange glow entered her line of sight, stopping her in her tracks yet again. It was an oddly shaped object that seemed to hang suspended in the air, moving around slightly as she reached her arm out towards it.  
>It certainly didn't seem like your average relic, and there was only one of it, still Weiss felt the need to observe it thoroughly as she quickly took hold of it with her hand and held it close to her scrutinizing gaze.<p>

It looked remarkably like something she had read about in her room a few weeks earlier, she let out a thoughtful 'hmm' as she tried to remember just what the book had said... _'a remarkably distinctive attribute...' 'best to avoid one if seen' 'belonging to the infamous creature of Grimm...'  
><em>Recalling that information, Weiss froze as a mighty roar confirmed her suspicions.  
><em>'The Death Stalker'<em>

There was a booming crash as the walls of the cliff side were blown away, the entrance now spanning a good few hundred yards wide.  
>Weiss managed to land on her feet, skidding to a halt opposite the ferocious Grimm, grateful that her quick reflexes allowed her to activate her Glyph before she was crushed by the creature's over sized claws.<p>

It snapped said claws at her in fury as Weiss took up a combat stance, berating herself when she got her foot placement wrong before raising her rapier to shoulder level and fixing the beast with a fierce glare. In any other circumstance she would have taken advantage of the confusion of the crash and escaped but not today, she had to learn to fight without someone watching her back.

Taking the initiative, Weiss began rotating the rapier's chamber and firing several basic Dust projectiles at the Goliath, they connected successfully and exploded on impact, however this only seemed to anger the beast as it prepared to charge at her.  
>Not quite confident that she'd be able to pull off such a lucky evasion again, Weiss rotated the chamber once more before activating a Glyph, sending her flying towards the monster with an expression of pure concentration.<p>

Stopping mid way, she twirled her rapier and planted it into the earth, sending a line of ice coursing through the ground until it reached the Stalker, encasing it's limbs in the ice. Now that she had it trapped, Weiss activated her Glyph once more, thinking back to her fight with the large knight in armor.

Within seconds she was in the air, before suddenly another Glyph appeared beneath her as she was sent propelling towards the captured beast, slashing at it as she passed by, she cursed inwardly as she couldn't break the hard, bony exo-skeleton, but she did not waver as yet another Glyph appeared beneath her, sending her back across the beast, this time successfully stabbing a piece of flesh, causing it to cry out in pain.

Eager to finish it, Weiss sped up, hurling herself across the Stalker at unmatched speeds, swinging and slicing all the while, feeling triumph with every connection. After a few more times, Weiss decided it was time, now firing herself high up into the sky, she rotated the chamber for fire dust before sending herself back down to crush its skull, she focused on it, careful not to miss it, however this lead to her ignoring what else was around her, including the large black tail that swung towards him.

With a forceful thud, the heiress was sent tumbling down onto the earth below, landing roughly and losing her rapier in the process.  
>Damn, she had forgotten to subdue the tail! Only just retaining consciousness, the girl attempted to lift herself up to face her enemy with pride.<br>It was to no avail as she collapsed once more, the glare weakening as she felt her strength leaving her.

She allowed herself to openly cure as the monster easily broke from its confines and began to approach its downed foe, was this the end for her? So close to the beginning, no, even before she had begun?! She was alone... all alone, there was no one coming for her now, she had damned well made sure of that, hmph, maybe it was karma getting her back, perhaps this was just meant to be it for her...

With those hopeless thoughts, the Stalker closed their distance, raising its powerful tail for one final strike.  
>Weiss closed her eyes...<br>The stalker raised its tail_  
>I'm sorry, Jau-<em>

"SNOW ANGEL!"

The sudden yell accompanied by the sound of water cooling at an immense speed brought the heiress to her senses as she reopened her eyes, them now finally meeting with a pair of deep blue orbs just inches away.

"So, you finally looked at me huh?" Jaune spoke with a boyish smile as he lay crouched beside her, behind him what appeared to be a large wave that was entirely frozen, containing within it the thrashing tail of the Death Stalker.

"Listen Weiss, everything that's happened. It happened because I was with you" he spoke calmly, causing Weiss's face to go pale as she began to sputter  
>"I-I'm so-"<br>"And that's because we belong together" Weiss was once again shocked into silence as Jaune continued with a warm smile

"You and I, the things we've been through, I wouldn't change a minute of it, because that's the time that we've spent together, as partners!  
>Sure, I fell into a lake and ate a bunch of dust, but look at me now, now I can protect those I care about! I can use this power for good!<p>

The appearance change was a bit of a shock but in a way, I like it, it separates me from being just a descendant of the blond haired Arcs, I feel like I'm my own person, plus you and I both know white hair is the coolest, right?" he joked, earning a very small smirk from the weak heiress as she felt her spirits being temporarily lifted.

"Anything that happened after that was my decision and my decision only, I was scared to go back, I was scared to do things on my own, I still kind of am, but that's why I was so glad when I saw you! Weiss, if I'm with you, I think I'll be able to take the next step, you know!  
>You were my first real friend, you're the first one I fought with and fought for with all my heart, you draw out the best of me, and as selfish as that sounds I really want to keep you by my side.<p>

I'm not really the brightest, or the most tactful, and I apparently have a tendency to do things that would be considered rash or flat out reckless, but if you'll accept me... I promise to fight with you with everything I've got!" he finished, sending her a look that told her he was completely genuine, he wanted to fight alongside her as her partner... as her _friend._

She allowed herself a small smile as she sent him a sarcastic look  
>"Honestly, must you always be so dramatic about everything?" she reached over and flicked his forehead<br>"Hey! What was that for?" he rubbed his 'wound' with a childish pout as Weiss chuckled, feeling the energy return to her once more as she extended her arm towards the boy.

"I suppose, if you insist, I might as well indulge you. Just so long as you don't get in my way" she spoke formally, causing a spark in the teen as he looked at her hopefully  
>"W-Wait... does that mean..." Weiss rolled her eyes.<br>"Yes, Jaune, that means that as of right now, we're partners"

She couldn't help but feel joyous at the overwhelming amount of pure happiness that was emitted by the boy's grin that stretched ear to ear as he stood up with a hearty cheer before holding an arm down to her.  
>With a courteous nod, she took his arm.<p>

And thus, the two took the next step, together.


End file.
